Indian football legend Sunil Chhetri has made an emotional appeal to the Tata Group after Jamshedpur FC decided to shut down its first-team operations. The former India captain took to twitter on Sunday, urging the company to reconsider its decision, saying Indian football cannot afford to lose one of its strongest supporters.
Jamshedpur FC is backed by the Tata Group since its inception back in 2017. The club has been one of the Indian Super League's established clubs. The decision to discontinue with the senior men's team has sparked concern across the Indian football community, with several players and former players expressing their disappointment.
In his emotional message, Sunil Chhetri described the development as a punch to the gut and highlighted Tata Group's long-standing contribution to Indian football through the All India Football Federation (AIFF) and Jamshedpur FC.
"It takes a lot to be a stakeholder in Indian football. It has been like that for some time now. But when everything around looks like it will crumble, you bank on family to hold on to each other," Chhetri wrote in his tweet.
It takes a lot to be a stakeholder in Indian football. It has been like that for some time now. But when everything around looks like it will crumble, you bank on family to hold on to each other. And more often than not, it is the elders in the house that you turn to, for…
— Sunil Chhetri (@chetrisunil11) August 2, 2026
Sunil Chhetri requests Tata Group to 'pick heart over head'
While acknowledging that this decision has been taken keeping in mind the business, Sunil Chhetri appealed to the owners to reconsider the move to help Indian football at this hour.
"I understand that some tough decisions in sport are down to what makes sense in the board room. But I can only request and hope that the think tank at TATA picks their heart over head and reconsiders this call. It might be a poor business decision, but it will be the one Indian football needs the most at this hour."
Sunil Chhetri also wrote that, while the Indian Super League might continue with one less team, the absence of the Tata Group from the country's premier football tournament would be a disaster.
"To know that Jamshedpur has folded first team operations is a punch to the gut. The players and staff will be without clubs, and they might find one by the end of it all. The League will have a team less, but the season will go on. However, not having the TATA group involved in the top tier of Indian football, that would be a disaster with no alternative."
Sunil Chhetri's post comes a day after several Jamshedpur FC players also released a video requesting the Tata Group to reverse its decision.
