Bhaichung Bhutia Profile   Name Bhaichung Bhutia Position Striker

Bhaichung Bhutia was born in Tinkitam on 15 December 1976 to Dorji Dorma and Sonam Topden. His elder brother was a footballer at the local level. In addition to football, Baichung also represented his school at badminton, basketball and athletics. His parents, both farmers in Sikkim, were originally not keen on Bhutia's interest in sports. However, after encouragement from his uncle Karma Bhutia, he started his education in St. Xaviers School, Pakyong, East Sikkim, and at the age of nine he won a football scholarship from SAI to attend the Tashi Namgyal Academy in Gangtok.

 In 1993, at the age of sixteen, he left school to join the professional East Bengal Club in Calcutta. Two years later he transferred to JCT Mills in Phagwara, which went on to win the India National Football League in the 1996–97 season. Bhutia was the top goalscorer in the league, and was chosen to make his international debut in the Nehru Cup. He was named "1996 Indian Player of the Year".

In 1997 he returned to East Bengal Club. Bhutia has the distinction of scoring the first hat-trick in the local derby between East Bengal and Mohun Bagan, when he registered one in East Bengal's 4–1 victory in the 1997 Federation Cup semi-final. He became team captain in the 1998–99 season, during which East Bengal finished second behind Salgaocar in the league. Furthermore he became the 19th footballer to receive the Arjuna Award in 1999, which the Government of India gives out to athletes to recognise their "outstanding achievements" in national sports.

Bhutia has had limited opportunities in playing overseas. On 30 September 1999, Bhutia travelled overseas to play for Bury F.C. in Greater Manchester, England, signing a three-year contract, and became the first Indian footballer to play professionally in Europe. This followed unsuccessful trials for Bhutia with Fulham F.C., West Bromwich Albion F.C. and Aston Villa F.C.. He had difficulty obtaining a visa and could not make his debut until 3 October 1999 against Cardiff City F.C.. In that match he came on as a substitute for Ian Lawson and played a part in Bury's second goal which was scored by Darren Bullock after Bhutia's volley was deflected into his path. On 15 April 2000, he scored his first goal in the English league in the game against Chesterfield. A recurring knee injury limited him to only three games in his final season at Bury and he was released after the club was placed in administration. His final appearance was a 3–0 defeat to Swindon Town on 27 August 2001. 

In 2002 he returned to India and played for the Mohun Bagan AC for a year. However this was largely unsuccessful as Bhutia was injured early in the season and failed to play again that season, missing Mohun Bagan's only trophy win; the All Airlines Gold Cup. Afterwards he again returned to the East Bengal Club, helping them to win the ASEAN (Association of South East Asian Nations) Cup 2003. Bhutia scored a goal in the final, a 3–1 win over BEC Tero Sasana, and was named the "man of the match". He also finished as the top scorer of the Championship with nine goals. Bhutia also scored in the 1–1 draw against Petrokimia Putra and scored five goals in a 6–0 win against Philippine Army FC in the same tournament. 

He signed up to play for Perak FA, the Malaysian championship club, from August to October 2003 on loan and returned to East Bengal Club for the regular season. However his stint at Perak FA ended in a 3–1 defeat to Sabah FA in the Malaysia Cup semi-finals, after which Bhutia described himself as the "villain of the piece".In the 2003–04 season Bhutia scored 12 goals as East Bengal won the league by four points from second-placed Dempo SC. During the 2004–05 season, Bhutia scored nine goals for East Bengal, which finished in third place behind SC Goa and champions Dempo. He continued to play for East Bengal until the end of the 2005–06 season. In his final season there he was awarded the "Player of the National Football League" by the All India Football Federation (AIFF) in a season where he scored 12 goals. Despite this, East Bengal finished runners-up to Mahindra United in the league.

On 15 June 2006, he joined Mohun Bagan AC and formed an attacking partnership with Jose Ramirez Barreto. However the 2006–07 season was a poor one for Bhutia and Mohun Bagan as they finished eighth in the league, just one position above relegation. During the 2007–08 season (the league was now known as the I-League), Bhutia scored 10 goals in 18 matches, and Mohun Bagan finished slightly higher in the league in fourth place. Bhutia won the Indian Player of the Year for the second time in 2008. In winning the award he became only the second footballer to win it more than once; the other was I. M. Vijayan. In the 2008–09 season, despite a 10-match winning streak, Mohun Bagan finished in second place behind Churchill Brothers because of a final day loss to Mahindra United. Bhutia finished the season with six goals. 

On 18 May 2009, Bhutia announced he would quit Mohun Bagan, due to the questioning of his footballing commitment by the club's officials. As a result of the Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa incident he was suspended for six months by Mohun Bagan. 

Bhutia was reported to have officially signed for East Bengal on 22 June 2009, on a one-year contract, announcing that he would end his playing career at the club. Upon signing for East Bengal, Bhaichung Bhutia declared it to be his homecoming.

Bhutia scored in his international debut for India against Uzbekistan in the 1995 Nehru Cup becoming India's youngest ever goalscorer, at 19. In the 1997 SAFF Championship, India beat the Maldives 5–1 in the final, Bhutia was responsible for one goal. Two years later the tournament was held in Goa and India successfully defended their title by beating Bangladesh 2–0 in the final. Baichung Bhutia scored the second goal for India after Bruno Coutinho opened the scoring and Bhutia was named as the tournament's most valuable player.

He also netted two goals in the final of the 2002 LG Cup held in Vietnam, in which India beat the host nation 3–2, Bhutia's goals came either side of half-time. The football tournament of the 2003 Afro-Asian Games saw India finish as runners-up behind Uzbekistan. Bhutia scored two goals in the tournament, both of which came in the 5–3 semi-final win over Zimbabwe. In the 2007 Nehru Cup, Bhutia scored a penalty in a 6–0 victory over Cambodia in the opening match of the tournament. He also scored in a 1–0 win over Bangladesh  and a 3–0 win over Kyrgyzstan. Bhutia played a significant part in the final as he was involved in the build-up to N. P. Pradeep's winning goal against Syria during which India won 1–0 to become champions. 

The next successful SAFF Championship was in 2005 where Bhutia was captain, in the group stages he scored a goal in a 3–0 victory over Bhutan but did not score in the other two matches. India progressed to the semi-finals during which Bhutia played in the 1–0 win over the Maldives. The final was a repeat of the 1999 final, as Bangladesh were the opposition, and once again India triumphed 2–0 during which Bhutia scored the second goal in the 81st minute from close range after Mehrajuddin Wadoo's 33rd minute opener. He received the award for the Most Valuable Player and also the Fair Play trophy. The 2008 SAFF Championship started with a 4–0 win over neighbouring Nepal, Bhutia scored the second goal in the 34th minute. It turned out to be Bhutia's only goal of the tournament, however he did have several chances to score in the semi-final against Bhutan which saw India win 2–1 to reach the final. In the final India failed to defend their title after losing 1–0 to the Maldives. 

He scored twice in a 2–1 victory in the 2008 AFC Challenge Cup against Turkmenistan to reach the semi-finals. The Sikkimese Sniper scored a goal in the final against Tajikistan during which India won 4–1; the victory also allowed them to automatically qualify for the 2011 AFC Asian Cup. He was also selected as the most valuable player of the tournament, finishing with three goals. 

The 2009 Nehru Cup was significant for Bhaichung as he earned his 100th cap for India in a 2–1 win over Kyrgyzstan, becoming the first Indian player to reach this milestone. He also scored the first goal in this match to help the team recover from their opening day defeat to Lebanon. In the match against Sri Lanka, Bhaichung again scored an opening goal which helped India to win 3–1 and solidified their chances of reaching the final. He was adjudged as the "man of the match" for his performance. Bhutia missed the final match of the round-robin as India was already guaranteed a spot in the deciding match. He was also adjudged as "Player of the Tournament" for his stellar performances in all of the matches, including the decider where they beat Syria in a penalty shootout.

The Sikkimese government has built a stadium, the Baichung Stadium in Namchi, the district headquarters, in honour of Bhutia. He is one of the most popular figures in the state and is considered as a role model to many Sikkimese as well to people from other states of India. On 23 January 2008, Bhutia was nominated for the Padma Shri, the fourth highest civilian award, for his contribution to Indian football. Three days later on 26 January, India's Republic Day, he was chosen for the Padma Shri. 

He played in the Goal 4 Africa match held in the Allianz Arena, Munich, on 12 July 2008, for the Edu team, led by Clarence Seedorf, and scored twice. In 2009, Bhutia started a foundation called the "Indian Sports Foundation" to help footballers overcome serious injuries. He is also the president of the Football Players’ Association of India (FPAI), an organisation that promises "fair treatment" of Indian footballers by dealing with financial aspects such as pension plans. He formed FPAI after seeing the Professional Footballers' Association in England.

He signed an endorsement deal with Adidas India Marketing Pvt. Ltd in November 2003. Currently he is endorsing Nike India.

Compiled By: Rajarshi Ghosh