FC GOA have officially informed their players, coaching staff and support personnel that the club is suspending all first-team operations with immediate effect.
According to a report by Marcus Mergulhao, club CEO Ravi Puskur communicated the “difficult decision” during an online meeting with the first team on Monday evening.
Puskur said, “As a club, we have done everything within our control to keep operations functioning as normally and consistently as possible, despite the extraordinary circumstances around us. However, as you are all aware, the wider impasse in Indian football continues without resolution. Given the prolonged uncertainty, and after careful consideration of all available options, we have reached the point where we have no alternative but to suspend all first team operations with immediate effect. This has truly been a last resort, taken with a heavy sense of responsibility and care.”
FC Goa were last in action on 24 December, when they played their concluding AFC Champions League Two group-stage fixture against FC Istiklol at the Fatorda Stadium.
During that match, Goa’s players made a striking protest by refusing to kick off immediately, instead squatting on the pitch as their opponents from Tajikistan looked on. The team paused play for the opening moments as a symbolic gesture to highlight the uncertainty surrounding Indian football. The act was intended to draw attention to the wider challenges currently affecting the domestic football ecosystem.
