On June 6, 2024, Sunil Chhetri retired from international football after a match versus Kuwait

The last few years have been tough for Indian football, with no major success achieved in any competition. Therefore, after years of giving his best on the pitch despite limited international glory, Sunil Chhetri hung up his boots on June 6, 2024, following a match against Kuwait that ended in a draw at the Salt Lake Stadium in Kolkata. However, that wasn’t the end of Chhetri.

Out of retirement

(Credit- Olympics)

Earlier this year, in March, the former Indian captain came out of retirement for the Asian Cup Qualifier final round matches. The then Indian coach Manolo Marquez talked Sunil out of retirement. In a statement, Manolo had stated, “The qualification for the Asian Cup is very crucial for us. Given the importance of the tournament and the matches ahead, I discussed with Sunil Chhetri about making a comeback to strengthen the national team. He agreed, and so we have included him in the squad.”

Another horror show

Despite Chhetri’s return to the squad, the Men in Blue continued to deliver dismal performances across all five matches against Bangladesh, Hong Kong, and Singapore.

The team drew its first match against Bangladesh, then lost to Hong Kong and drew against Singapore. In the away games, India lost to Singapore and Bangladesh. The team still has one match remaining against Hong Kong to be played on March 31, 2026.

(Credit- The Statesman)

However, India is already out of the tournament with only two points from five games, including two draws and three losses.

Even for Sunil Chhetri, the outings weren’t fruitful, given that he scored only once.

Final goodbye

After India crashed out of the tournament, Chhetri realised his time in international football was over—this time forever.

(Credit- NDTV Sports)

In a video interview with the Times of India, Chhetri stated, “It was easy telling (coach) Khalid (Jamil) sir about my decision. When I joined the national team, I had only one idea in my head. I’m going there to be as helpful as possible for the qualifiers. There’s nothing else. If there were no qualifiers, I probably wouldn’t have come back. When mathematically we could not qualify, I was happy telling the coach, and he understood.”

Chhetri retired for the second and final time with 95 international goals in 157 appearances. However, he is still active in the domestic circuit, playing for Bengaluru FC, but the future of the Indian Super League (ISL) hangs in the balance.