Hockey India League winners yet to pay players’ wages

In a scenario that paints a very grim picture of the Hockey India League, Hockey India has written to its two reigning champions — Shrachi Rarh Bengal Tigers, who won the men’s crown, and Odisha Warriors, who are the women’s title holders — to pay pending salaries of their players and staff.

The Tigers owe over 30 per cent to both their Indian and foreign players. The Bengal team is yet to pay its support staff, various vendors and kit partners for the services rendered last year when it won the league.

The Odisha team, it is said, owe a lot more money to its players. HI in its mail correspondence had asked both the teams to pay the arrears by April 15 but the two teams have not complied.

HI secretary general Bhola Nath Singh agreed that there are a few pending payments but said that the team owners are in the process of clearing up the dues.

“We have not received a single complaint from any player about the pending salaries. Since we interact with the players and with the team owners, we got to know that their salaries are pending," Singh told The Tribune on Saturday.

“This is our responsibility as a federation to see to it that the payments get made in time. There are no issues here as we have already spoken to the owners and they will be clearing the dues very soon. As far as the mail is concerned, there are rules that everyone needs to adhere to and we sent them one as a reminder. But if you ask me personally, I do not think there is anything to worry about as all pending dues will be cleared very soon," he added.

Rahul Todi, who owns the Bengal team, also assured that they would be clearing up the dues soon. “There are some payments pending and it will be paid in full soon. There are no worries," he said.

Gonasika pulls out

Besides, Team Gonasika, who finished seventh in the eight-team men’s competition, have decided to pull out of the league. It is understood that HI has already started discussions with interested parties to replace Gonasika for the next edition.

When quizzed about Gonasika, Singh said the team’s pull-out was a surprise to the federation. “We were surprised why the team, whose owners were very prompt in paying their franchise fee and the way they worked, chose to pull out. We are talking to a few interested parties and will announce a replacement team soon," he said.

However, sources close to one of the teams said the situation is direr than what the officials think.

“If a team can’t pay the players and vendors in time, can it pay the franchise amount that is due by August 31? I have serious doubts that such teams would be able to pay Rs 7 crore or 10 crore if they own both the men’s and women’s teams to stay in the league," the source said.

The non-payments, including to the vendors, was one of the major complaints that marred the league in 2017, the year it was shut.

Mindful of a repeat, HI had inserted a specific clause in the agreement with regard to the wages.

“We have ensured that franchise owners stay true to their commitments. There is a clause in the contract that they have to clear the wages no later than 45 days after the end of the season. If they do not they are likely to get some sanctions," a senior official of HI had said on the sidelines of the announcement of the league’s latest iteration.

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