Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports (MYAS) Roadmap to Professionalize India’s Sporting Ecosystem
SDG 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth | SDG 4: Quality Education | SDG 17: Partnerships for the Goals
Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports (MYAS) | Sports Authority of India (SAI)
The Task Force Report on Capacity Building of Sports Administrators (September 2025), provides a landmark diagnostic and prescriptive roadmap to professionalize India’s sporting ecosystem under the Khelo Bharat NITI 2025 framework. The report identifies critical systemic deficits, including a lack of professional cadres, fragmented training, and minimal digital integration, which hinder India’s ambition of becoming a Top-10 sporting nation and hosting the 2036 Olympic Games.
Key strategic pillars for this transformation include:
Apex Governance & Operations: The establishment of the National Council for Sports Education & Capacity Building (NCSECB) as an autonomous statutory body to regulate and certify training, supported by the National Training & Development Cell (NTDC) as its operational arm.
Competency & Maturity Models: Adoption of a five-level Capability Maturity Model (CMM)—ranging from Foundation Operator to Visionary Architect—to assess institutional growth and map ten core competency clusters, including athlete orientation, ethics, and digital awareness.
Athlete-First Leadership: Introduction of a Dual Athlete Career Pathway using modular, credit-based education to transition retiring athletes into professional governance roles, paired with the Sportsman of Merit (SOM) incentives.
Institutional Networked Delivery: A decentralized model leveraging a network of premier institutions (e.g., NS NIS Patiala, IIMs, IITs, and NLUs) to deliver standardized training, ensuring regional reach and inclusivity.
Digital & Performance Backbone: Implementation of a Unique Administrator ID (UAID) linked to an Academic Bank of Credits and a National Performance Management and Monitoring System (PMMS) to track learning outcomes via real-time KPIs.
Strategic Civil Service Integration: Mandatory sports governance modules for IAS and state cadre officers at induction (LBSNAA) and mid-career stages to ensure effective district-level implementation.
Professional Cadre Development: Transition away from reliance on generalist civil servants by establishing a permanent sports administration cadre with domain expertise in finance, law, and high-performance management.
Global Exposure Framework: Establish a tiered partnership model with the IOC, FIFA, and global universities (e.g., Loughborough, AISTS) for curriculum co-design, joint research, and role-linked immersion.
Practice-to-Policy Mandates: Formally mandate a fixed percentage of administrative roles for certified professionals and link Continuous Professional Development (CPD) credits to promotions and career progression.
Ethics & Integrity Systems: Institutionalize a National Sports Data Council and robust whistle-blower mechanisms to ensure transparency in selections and financial management.
What is the Capability Maturity Model (CMM) for Sports? It is a five-stage diagnostic and planning tool used to evaluate and advance the maturity of sports organizations. It enables institutions to evolve from ‘Emergent’ (Level 1), focused on basic task execution, to ‘Strategic Anchor’ (Level 5), where they shape national and global systems through long-term visioning, diplomacy, and sustainable legacy planning.
Policy Relevance
The report aligns with the National Sports Governance Act, 2025, which mandates greater athlete and gender representation in federations. By transitioning from a "generalist-led" to a "competency-led" administrative model, India aims to reduce the "ecosystem literacy" gap, ensuring that billions in public and private investment translate into elite performance.
Follow the full report here: Task Force Report on Capacity Building of Sports Administrators