Kalyan Chaubey
Personal information
Date of birth (1976-12-16) 16 December 1976 (age 49)
Place of birth Kolkata, West Bengal, India
Height 1.75 m (5 ft 9 in)
Position Goalkeeper
Youth career
Tata Football Academy
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1996–1997 Mohun Bagan 27
1997–1999 East Bengal 67
1999–2000 Mohun Bagan
2000–2001 Bengal Mumbai 17
2001–2003 Salagaocar 53
2003–2005 Mahindra United
2005–2007 JCT
2007–2009 Mumbai FC
2009–2010 Salagaocar

11th President of All India Football Federation
Assumed office
2 September 2022
Preceded byPraful Patel
Personal details
PartyBharatiya Janata Party
* Club domestic league appearances and goals

Kalyan Chaubey (born 16 December 1976) is an Indian politician of Bharatiya Janata Party[1] and a former professional football goalkeeper.[2] He is the current president of the All India Football Federation.[3]

Football career

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Playing career

[edit]

Chaubey graduated from Tata Football Academy in 1995.[4] He played as a goalkeeper and won the award – "Indian Goalkeeper of the Year" – in 1997–98[5] and 2001–02. He was member of the Indian teams at U-17 Asian Youth Championship 1994 in Iran and U-20 Asian Youth Championship 1996 in South Korea in 1996, the India national team from 1999 to 2006.[6]

He was part of the Indian team that won the SAFF Championship twice. He played the National Championship (Santosh Trophy) for five different states of Jharkhand, West Bengal, Goa, Punjab and Maharashtra. He played for Mohun Bagan AC, East Bengal FC,[5] Salgaocar SC, Mahindra United, JCT Phagwara, and Mumbai FC as a goalkeeper.[7][8] He had a short loan spell at Bangladesh Muktiyodha, Dhaka. [citation needed] He also played for East Bengal and Mohun Bagan from 1996 to 2000.[9][10] In 2002, he trialled for the German club 2. Bundesliga side Karlsruher SC,[11] and Verbandsliga Württemberg outfit VfR Heilbronn.[11]

Post football career

[edit]

After his retirement as a footballer, he had a brief modelling career. He also worked as a sports commentator and analyst for Sony, Ten TV and Start Sports Network for tournaments like Calcutta Football League and the Indian Super League.[12] He was the CEO of Mohun Bagan academy from 2010 to 2013. He was also a co-ordinator for the GOALZ Project 2012, developed by Kolkata Police and British Council, to support underprivileged children.

Sports administrative career

[edit]

AIFF President and IOA Joint Secretary

[edit]

On 2 September 2022, Chaubey was elected as the President of the All India Football Federation after his 33–1 victory over former India international footballer Bhaichung Bhutia.[13][14][15] On 28 November 2022, he was elected unopposed as the join secretary of the Indian Olympic Association.[16] He is also functioning as the acting CEO of the IOA till the appointment of the post.[17]

Allegations of bribery

[edit]

On 2 March 2024, AIFF principal legal advisor alleged misuses of federation funds by Kalyan Chaubey and allotment of broadcasting tenders for various AIFF competitions to a company close to the president, these allegations were denied by Chaubey.[18] Few days later, The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) asked the former legal head to submit evidence and sought full case files from the AIFF.[19] On 9 July 2024, one day before the Maniktala bypoll elections, Kunal Ghosh, a Trinamool Congress leader released an audio recording alleging that BJP candidate Kalyan Chaubey offered him a post in football administration in return for his help to win the election.[20] Chaubey denied the allegations stating it was a courtesy call and the recording was edited.[21]

Administrative performance timeline

[edit]
Date Statement/Action Plan Result Ref.
8 September 2022 Expansion of women's football
  • introduce age-group league
  • introduce a minimum salary cap in the IWL
  • No age-group league for women's football initiated
[22]
11 September 2022 MoU with Qatar FA
  • strategic alliance for the mutual benefit of football
  • None
[23]
6 October 2022 MoU with Saudi FA
  • provision of technological support
  • organization and hosting of youth competitions for both men and women on a regular basis
  • exchange of football and governance experts
[24]
5 December 2022 2027 AFC Asian Cup host bid withdrawal
  • AIFF decided to withdraw their bid in order to build the foundations of proper footballing structure instead of hosting of big events as hosting requires big resources
[25]
3 July 2023 Restore Federation Cup
  • to revive and restore Federation Cup as the premier cup competition from the 2023–24 season
  • Not held, plan abandoned
[26]
31 August 2023 Institutional League
  • starting the Institutional League as a competition for the institutional teams
  • Did not come to fruition
[27]
September 2023 Hero MotoCorp title sponsorship of Indian football national tiers
  • continuation of title sponsorship of Indian men's and women's league and cup competitions
  • Failed to reach agreement with the organisation regarding sponsorship, leading to the end of Hero MotoCorp's association with Indian football, Indian national tiers organised without title sponsors since the 2023–24 season
[28]
30 October 2023 MoU with CAFA
  • participation of Indian national teams across all age groups in both men's and women's competitions on an invitational basis
  • mutual benefits in all areas of football, with a specific focus on youth football, women's football, coach education, and refereeing
  • India NT participated in the 2025 CAFA Nations Cup
  • Age group men's or women's teams and senior women's team are yet to participate in CAFA tournaments
[29]
15 November 2023 AIFF FIFA Academy
  • set up the AIFF-FIFA Talent Academy under the FIFA Talent Development Scheme
[30]
6 January 2024 Introducing Additional Video Review System (AVRS)
  • participating in the trial of AVRS instead of looking for possibilities for VAR
  • Not implemented
[31]
29 February 2024 U20 Men's National Championships
  • starting the National Championships for the U20 men's age group
  • started from the 2023–24 season
[32]
22 March 2024 TW3 age test in national youth competitions
  • Application of TW3 age test across U13 and U15 competitions at the national level youth leagues
  • initiated in Junior Youth League and Sub-Junior Youth League from the 2024–25 season
[33]
10 September 2024 Reintroduce India U20 team in I-League [34]
2 December 2024 Commercial rights of premier AIFF competitions
  • signed commercial rights agreement for I-League, I-League 2, IWL, Santosh Trophy and Rajmata Jijabai Trophy with Shrachi Sports
  • the broadcasting of the competitions to be streamed on SSEN app
  • broadcasting of 80% of I-League matches also awarded to Sony
[35]
11 July 2025 Roadmap of Indian Women's Football post India's 2026 AFC Women's Asian Cup qualification
  • holding the 2025–26 Indian Women's League from September 2025 to January 2026
  • participation of India U20 in the IWL
  • India WNT to undergo 83 days of preparation camps, conducted in three phases
  • India WNT to play 10-12 international friendlies and 5-7 matches with domestic teams
  • each player is projected to play at least 30 matches between August and February, combining both club and international commitments
  • 2025–26 Rajmata Jijabai Trophy to be held after the continental tournament for uninterrupted WNT preparation
  • unable to host 2025–26 Indian Women's League as per roadmap, IWL started much later from 20 December 2025 with only one phase
  • India U20 were promoted from IWL 2, but later were included in the IWL
  • camps held only during the October and November FIFA windows
  • India WNT have only played 2 FIFA and 1 exhibition friendlies in the October window and no matches were organised in the November window
  • only certain players have played international friendlies and AFC club games, while league only started from December 2025
  • 2025–26 Rajmata Jijabai Trophy was held before continental tournament contrary to the roadmap
[36]
November/December 2025 Indian Super League tender
  • to monetise commercial rights of ISL
  • did not attract any bids, men's top tier season yet to start
[37]
December 2025 I-League, I-League 2, I-League 3 tender
  • to monetise commercial rights of I-League tiers
  • did not attract any bids, men's lower tiers season yet to start
[37]
December 2025 IWL, IWL 2 tender
  • to monetise commercial rights of IWL tiers
  • only one bid received, but AIFF failed to reach agreement with the bidder, women's top tier started without title sponsor
[37]

Political career

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In 2015, he turned to politics and joined the Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP). He was nominated by the BJP as its candidate for the Krishnanagar (Lok Sabha constituency) in the 2019 Indian general election but lost to Mahua Moitra of the All India Trinamool Congress (AITC).[12][38][39] In 2021, he contested as a BJP candidate for the Maniktala constituency in the 2021 West Bengal Legislative Assembly election where he lost to Sadhan Pandey of the AITC.[40] In 2024, he again contested from the same constituency in the bypolls after the death of Pandey. However, he lost by a huge margin to the widowed wife, Supti Pandey, who polled nearly 4 times the votes of Chaubey.[41]

Personal life

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Kalyan Chaubey is the son-in-law of former longtime Mohan Bagan general secretary Anjan Mitra.[42]

Honours

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India

Individual

  • Indian Goalkeeper of the Year: 1997–98, 2001–02

References

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  1. ^ "Krishnanagar Lok Sabha election results 2019 West Bengal: TMC's Mahua Moitra surges ahead of BJP's Kalyan Chaubey". Dna India. Archived from the original on 7 November 2020. Retrieved 25 July 2022.
  2. ^ Chaudhuri, Arunava (31 October 1999). "NEWS FOR THE MONTH OF October 1999". indianfootball.de. Indian Football Network. Archived from the original on 29 March 2005. Retrieved 24 October 2021.
  3. ^ "Kalyan Chaubey elected as new AIFF President". www.the-aiff.com. Retrieved 10 October 2024.
  4. ^ Sportstar, Team (2 September 2022). "Who is Kalyan Chaubey? 10 things to know about the new president of AIFF". Sportstar. Retrieved 10 October 2024.
  5. ^ a b "'It's like losing your father' − PK's proteges remember loving coach". ESPN. 20 March 2020. Retrieved 10 October 2024.
  6. ^ Arunava, Chaudhuri. "News for the month of May: 1998". indianfootball.de. Indian Football Network. Archived from the original on 15 August 2021. Retrieved 15 August 2021.
  7. ^ "Mumbai Football Club launched". Rediff News. 28 June 2007. Archived from the original on 2 July 2010. Retrieved 9 June 2009.
  8. ^ Kamboe, Harmit (26 January 2012). "ONGC I-League: Interview with Salgaocar Goalkeeper Kalyan Chaubey". Sportskeeda.
  9. ^ Chaudhuri, Arunava. "Season ending Transfers 1999: India". indianfootball.de. Indian Football Network. Archived from the original on 17 February 2020. Retrieved 1 July 2021.
  10. ^ Chaudhuri, Arunava. "Season ending Transfers 2000: India". indianfootball.de. Indian Football Network. Archived from the original on 17 February 2020. Retrieved 1 July 2021.
  11. ^ a b Chaudhuri, Arunava (28 July 2002). "NEWS FOR THE MONTH OF July 2002 — Salgaocar SC's Bengali goalkeeper Kalyan Chaubey is on his way to Germany". www.indianfootball.de. Indian Football Network. Archived from the original on 4 November 2002. Retrieved 13 November 2021.
  12. ^ a b "BJP Nominates 'Goalie' Kalyan Chaubey To Fight From Krishnanagar". News From Nadia. Archived from the original on 29 July 2021. Retrieved 25 July 2022.
  13. ^ Sports Desk, FPJ (2 September 2022). "Former goalkeeper Kalyan Chaubey appointed new AIFF President". www.freepressjournal.com. The Free Press Journal. Archived from the original on 4 September 2022. Retrieved 4 September 2022.
  14. ^ "List of AIFF executive committee members & co-opted eminent players". khelnow.com. Khel Now. 2 September 2022. Archived from the original on 4 September 2022. Retrieved 2 September 2022.
  15. ^ Media Team, AIFF (3 September 2022). "AIFF Executive Committee appoints Shaji Prabhakaran as new Secretary General". www.the-aiff.com. New Delhi: All India Football Federation. Archived from the original on 4 September 2022. Retrieved 4 September 2022.
  16. ^ "President-elect PT Usha set to become first woman IOA chief". The Times of India. 27 November 2022. ISSN 0971-8257. Retrieved 10 October 2024.
  17. ^ "Indian Olympic Association Forms Dedicated Legal Team, To Hire CEO Soon". Outlook India. 30 December 2022. Retrieved 10 October 2024.
  18. ^ "Football: AIFF legal head accuses President Kalyan Chaubey of corruption". Business Standard. 3 March 2024.
  19. ^ "AFC writes to AIFF on charges against Chaubey". The Times of India. 17 March 2024. ISSN 0971-8257. Retrieved 11 October 2024.
  20. ^ Nag, Jayatri (9 July 2024). "TMC leader Kunal Ghosh accuses BJP nominee of bribery attempt". The Economic Times. ISSN 0013-0389. Retrieved 11 October 2024.
  21. ^ "Day before Bengal bypolls, Trinamul's Kunal Ghosh accuses BJP's Kalyan Chaubey of offering bribe". The Telegraph online. 9 July 2024.
  22. ^ "AIFF President Kalyan Chaubey announces plan to expand women's football". AIFF. 8 September 2022.
  23. ^ "AIFF, QFA enter strategic alliance for mutual benefit". AIFF. 11 September 2022.
  24. ^ "AIFF, Saudi Arabia Football Federation sign historic MoU". AIFF. 6 October 2022.
  25. ^ "AIFF Statement". AIFF. 5 December 2022.
  26. ^ "AIFF Executive Committee inducts five new clubs into Hero I-League, Federation Cup restored". AIFF. 3 July 2023.
  27. ^ "AIFF holds pre-bid meeting with Institutional League teams". AIFF. 31 August 2023.
  28. ^ "No title sponsor for ISL?". Hindustan Times. 13 September 2023.
  29. ^ "AIFF-CAFA MoU paves the way for National Teams' participation in Central Asian tournaments". AIFF. 30 October 2023.
  30. ^ "AIFF-FIFA academy to be launched on November 21 in Bhubaneswar". AIFF. 15 November 2023.
  31. ^ "AIFF President evaluates the possibility of implementing 'Additional Video Review System' (AVRS) in India". AIFF. 6 January 2024.
  32. ^ "AIFF announces U20 Men's NFC; to be held in Chhattisgarh". AIFF. 29 February 2024.
  33. ^ "AIFF stresses on TW3 age test in youth football". AIFF. 22 March 2024.
  34. ^ "AIFF ExCo: India U20 to feature in I-League; National teams to get high-altitude training camps at Arunachal's Tawang". AIFF. 10 September 2024.
  35. ^ "AIFF ExCo: India U20 to feature in I-League; National teams to get high-altitude training camps at Arunachal's Tawang". AIFF. 10 September 2024.
  36. ^ "AIFF charts roadmap for Indian women's national team after historic Asian Cup qualification". AIFF. 11 July 2025.
  37. ^ a b c "Tenders And RFPs". AIFF.
  38. ^ "Famous Goalkeeper Kalyan Chaubey set to score goal for BJP in Krishnanagar Lok Sabha constituency on April 29". The Indian Wire. Archived from the original on 28 April 2019. Retrieved 25 July 2022.
  39. ^ "Krishnanagar Election result 2019: Mahua Moitra of the TMC likely wins by 63,218 votes". www.timesnownews.com. 24 May 2019. Retrieved 10 October 2024.
  40. ^ "West Bengal bypolls 2024: BJP fields Kalyan Chaubey from Maniktala, Manas Ghosh from Raiganj". Business Today. 17 June 2024. Retrieved 10 October 2024.
  41. ^ "Supti Pandey beats BJP, her husband's record in Maniktala". The Times of India. 14 July 2024. ISSN 0971-8257. Retrieved 10 October 2024.
  42. ^ SNS (8 November 2019). "Former Mohun Bagan secretary Anjan Mitra passes away at 72". The Statesman. Retrieved 11 October 2024.
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Further reading

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