Amelia Valverde is likely to quit as coach of the Indian women’s football team after the All India Football Federation (AIFF) Technical Committee decided on Tuesday not to renew her contract.
The 39-year-old was appointed in charge of the Blue Tigresses just six weeks before the AFC Women’s Asian Cup on a short-term deal until the end of India’s campaign in the tournament.
However, that period ended disastrously with India losing all three group stage matches to Vietnam, Japan and Chinese Taipei respectively, conceding sixteen goals and scoring just two.
Valverde arrived in India with an impressive reputation in women’s football, having coached Costa Rica to two World Cups. As a result, despite the Asian Cup debacle, there was growing belief among many in the Federation that she would stay.
However, the Technical Committee, which met on Tuesday morning, decided differently.
After the hour-long meeting, following arguments both for and against her, the committee felt it was time to give preference to an Indian coach, and Anthony Andrews was among the names discussed at the meeting.
Andrews is the most successful coach in the Indian Women’s League (IWL), the top women’s football in India. Andrews, an AFC ‘A’ license holder, guided Gokulam Kerala to back-to-back IWL titles and guided East Bengal to its maiden title last season.
He was also recommended as India women’s coach after the departure of Thomas Dennerby in 2023. But ultimately the move did not materialize.
The Technical Committee’s stance puts AIFF in a difficult position as all Indian women’s teams currently have foreign coaches, two of whom – Valverde and Pamela Conti – have been hired with an eye on the Asian Cups.
Former Italy international Conti will be at the helm of the under-17 side at the Asian Cup in May, and a sudden loss of confidence in foreign coaches could create unnecessary fire.
In the context of the senior team too, the U-turn will not bode well, especially after an Indian coach (Crispin Chettri) was demoted to make way for a foreign coach in Valverde.
Published on March 24, 2026
