Syed Abdul Rahim (17 August 1909–11 June 1963), he was popularly known as Rahim Saab, was an Indian football coach and manager of the Indian national team from 1950 until his death in 1963, and a former player.

Syed Abdul Rahim Personal Life

He is regarded as the architect of modern Indian football. Basically a teacher by profession, he was a good motivator and his tenure as a coach is regarded as a “golden age” of football in India, and under his stewardship he led the Indian Football team to win Gold medals in Asian Games of—(1951-Delhi and 1962-Jakarta), play semi-finals of the Summer Olympics—(1956-Melbourne) making India the first ever Asian country to achieve this place, win the titles of Colombo Cup for the years of— (1952-Colombo and 1954-Calcutta and came runners-up in Pestabola Merdeka—(1959 Kuala Lumpur).

Syed Abdul Rahim Teacher and Football Career

Rahim was born in Hyderabad, India, on 17 August 1909. During his early years, he represented the football team of Osmania University, from where he graduated and played for a team called “Eleven Hunters,” which was made up of current and former students of the college.

After working as a teacher, Rahim returned to the college to complete his arts degree. Following that, he worked as a teacher in Kachiguda Middle School, Urdu Sharif School, Darul-ul-Uloom High School, and Chaderghat High School. He then took a diploma in physical education and took charge of sports activities in the last two schools he served as teacher.

Rahim was a professional footballer for a while, as he had represented Qamar Club, which was then considered to be one of the best teams in the local league. Rahim also played for the Dutch club HSV Hoek, before going on to become a manager.

He was elected Secretary of the Hyderabad Football Association in 1943. From 1943 to 1963, he was the coach of the Hyderabad City Police FC. His first assignment as India’s coach was to prepare the team that toured Ceylon in 1949. India won the gold at their first Asian Games two years later.

During Rahim’s tenure, the Indian football team enjoyed a great deal of success. Apart from winning the Asian games in 1951 and 1962, India also reached the semi-finals of the 1956 Melbourne Olympics, which is still considered India’s greatest ever achievement in football. Rahim’s last success was at the 1962 Asian games in Jakarta, where India went on to win gold, beating South Korea in the finals in front of a crowd of 100,000.

Rahim Death Reason

On 11 June 1963, Rahim died of cancer after six months of bed rest.

Rahim’s son

Rahim’s son, Syed Shahid Hakim was a former professional football player, and had represented India in the 1960 Summer Olympics tournament.

Bio Pic (Maidaan Movie)

A biopic on Rahim named Maidaan, directed by Amit Ravindernath Sharma, is going to be released on

17 February 2023 with Ajay Devgn in lead role.

Some Facts About Syed Abdul Rahim

• Since he was a child, Rahim has been fascinated by football and displayed impressive football skills at such a young age.
• He participated in athletics as well as academics at his school.
• In the mid-1920s, football culture came to Hyderabad, which attracted a lot of young people like Rahim.
• Later, he went on to play football for the Osmania University football team.
• He began his career as a teacher, but never abandoned his first love “football,” and played for the Qamar Club, one of the best teams in Hyderabad’s local league during the 1920s to the 1940s.
• SM Hadi became the Hyderabad Football Association’s President in 1939, followed by Rahim in 1942, who remained the association’s Secretary until his death in 1964.
• Rahim was a genius coach who had the ability to spot raw talent and mold it into a brilliant player. He was a strict disciplinarian, had great tactics, motivational speeches, and was farsighted so that he generated a chain of footballers, changed their attitude toward the game, and improved the infrastructure of football in Hyderabad.
• During his tenure, the HCP team won 5 consecutive Rovers Cups, which remains a record to this day. The team also managed to reach the 5 Durand Cup finals with the team; winning 3 of them.
• In 1950, he became the coach of the Indian National football team, along with managing the Hyderabad City Police team as well.
• Did Syed Abdul Rahim smoke?: Yes….
• Did Syed Abdul Rahim drink alcohol?: Not Known