Sunil Chhetri Wins 2017 AIFF Player of the Year Award

The AIFF Award Ceremony honoured footballers and institutions for their contribution to football in 2017

Indian captain Sunil Chhetri won the top award, Player of the Year, for a fifth time

(Photo: IANS)

Inspirational captain Sunil Chhetri was, on 23 July, named as the 2017 All India Football Federation (AIFF) Player of the Year by the national body in Mumbai.

Chhetri recently became the second Indian footballer to play 100 international games after Baichung Bhutia. Chhetri is a star striker for both India and Bengaluru FC.

While Chhetri was declared the 2017 AIFF Player of the Year in the men’s category, Kamala Devi was adjudged the 2017 AIFF woman Player of the Year.

Young Anirudh Thapa, who had impressed everyone with his performance in the four-nation Intercontinental Cup which India won, was declared as the 2017 Emerging Player of the Year.

E Panthoi was named as the 2017 woman Emerging Player of the Year, an AIFF statement said.

List of 2017 AIFF Awardees:

• 2017 AIFF Player of the Year: Sunil Chhetri
• 2017 AIFF Woman Footballer of the Year: Kamala Devi
• 2017 AIFF Emerging Player of the Year: Anirudh Thapa
• 2017 AIFF Emerging Woman Footballer of the Year: E Panthoi
• 2017 AIFF Award for Best Referee: C R Srikrishna
• 2017 AIFF Award for Best Assistant Referee: Sumanta Datta (Assam)
• 2017 AIFF Award for long-time contribution to Indian Football : Hero MotoCorp
• 2017 AIFF Award for Best Grassroots Development Programme : Kerala Football Association.