{"id":5926,"date":"2021-02-04T14:03:14","date_gmt":"2021-02-04T08:33:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thesportsschool.com\/?p=5926"},"modified":"2023-05-24T02:33:29","modified_gmt":"2023-05-24T02:33:29","slug":"indian-woman-footballer-bala-devi","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thesportsschool.com\/indian-woman-footballer-bala-devi\/","title":{"rendered":"All you need to know about Bala Devi, The First Indian Woman Footballer to Bag Contract with Foreign Club"},"content":{"rendered":"
Not much attention is given to <\/span>Indian football<\/b> in general, let alone WOMEN’s football. But, you should. Why? Because <\/span>Indian women footballers<\/b> are spreading their wings, making the country proud, and getting global recognition. Have no clue who we are talking about? Let us introduce you to one such <\/span>Indian women footballer<\/b> Ngangom <\/span>Bala Devi,<\/b> who plays in a major women’s football league in Scotland and makes the country proud<\/span>.<\/b><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Early life and domestic career:<\/b><\/p>\n Bala Devi <\/b>was born on 2nd February 1990 in Manipur. While growing up, she was always fascinated by the sport and used to play with the local boys. However, she was always criticized for it. <\/span><\/p>\n “I used to play with the local boys initially. Many people started talking about my playing and started criticizing me.”<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n However, she continued playing football as she found strength and support in her father, a state-level football player. <\/span><\/p>\n “My father was a footballer, and he used to motivate me always. Even today, he is my go-to person for any kind of football query, however silly it may be.”<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n Bala Devi<\/b> was part of the Manipur team at the under-19 Women’s championship<\/em> held in Assam in 2002. She was declared the best player of the tournament.<\/strong> She eventually represented the Manipur Senior Women’s Football Team in the Indian women’s football championship and various other Indian women’s football clubs, such as the Manipur Police Sports Club and KRYPHSA F.C.<\/span><\/p>\n