A reel of legendary former Indian footballer I.M. Vijayan wildly celebrating Argentina’s last-gasp win against Egypt in the FIFA World Cup pre-quarterfinal has recently gone viral on social media.
Mr. Vijayan, a devoted Argentina fan who fondly recalls playing football with Diego Maradona during a promotional event in Kannur as one of the greatest moments of his life, retired from professional football long ago and from police service in 2025. He can now afford to lose sleep over late-night matches played across different time zones and catch up on it during the day.
But thousands of equally passionate fans in football-crazy Kerala do not enjoy that luxury, leaving them to stumble through school and work like sleep-deprived zombies.
“Many students, both boys and girls, follow the World Cup closely. They stay awake in classrooms only because teachers do not let them sleep during lessons. Their passion is evident from their enthusiastic participation in the World Cup-themed anti-drug campaign being held at the school,” said Smitha Kurian, a teacher at SNDP Higher Secondary School, Udayamperoor, Ernakulam.
Saturday (July 11, 2026) marks a month since the World Cup began, and, thankfully for sleep-deprived fans, only a week remains before it concludes. During the group stage, matches were scheduled back-to-back from midnight until early morning, leaving football enthusiasts with barely any sleep.
Kichu George, a paediatrician, said he had not noticed a surge in cases of sleep deprivation among children linked to the World Cup. “That is probably because children up to a certain age follow only their favourite teams and may, at most, skip classes the day after a match. Parents are unlikely to let them stay up late frequently or miss school often,” he added.
Tech professionals, however, were perhaps the least affected, accustomed as they are to working across time zones. “To some extent, it has been a blessing in disguise for football fans among us. Many of us work through the night, and the match timings actually suited us,” said Aneesh Panthalani, State president of Progressive Techies, a collective of IT employees.
Since World Cup-related sleep deprivation is seasonal, its long-term impact is likely to be minimal. However, there may be temporary behavioural issues. “Sleep-deprived people can become irritable and angry at the slightest provocation. It may affect productivity and concentration in schools and offices. Many, though, try to compensate by taking short daytime naps to balance the sheer joy of pursuing their passion,” said noted psychiatrist C.J. John.
Published – July 12, 2026 01:35 am IST
