All 14 clubs will be in action during the Indian Super League competition starting next month, but the All India Football Federation is yet to have a commercial partner on board for the ISL.
After several weeks of uncertainty, the sports ministry intervened to break the deadlock, announcing the start of the Indian Super League from February 14.
The Sports Minister Dr Mansukh Mandaviya announced the Indian Super League (ISL) will start from February 14. “The I-League will also run parallelly from the same date,” the sports ministry release said. “The announcement was made following a stakeholder meeting between the government, All India Football Federation in Delhi on Tuesday.”
The AIFF is yet to have a commercial partner on board for the ISL. Therefore, the AIFF will have to shell out a total of Rs. 10.3 crore for the conduct of ISL and Rs. 3.2 crore for the conduct of I-League. However, the AIFF has agreed to fund the IWL.
For the conduct of ISL, a total of 40 percent will be invested by the AIFF. The remaining funds will be used from the Annual Calendar for Training and Competitions (ACTC) norms, which the sports ministry earmarks for National Sports Federations annually.
According to reports, initially some clubs were reluctant to play according to the new format, but later agreed to compete in the ISL starting February 14. It may be recalled due to uncertainty of the ISL, several clubs had temporarily halted the practice and disbanded the team.
“The ISL was delayed due to some court cases. However, we have been able to speak to all stakeholders and the issue has been resolved,” the sports minister said in a statement.
The format of the ISL was shared by AIFF president Kalyan Chaubey. “There will be single home and away leg matches. A total of 91 matches will be played with 14 teams taking part in the ISL,” AIFF president said. “For I-League, a total of 55 matches will be played with 11 teams taking part.”
According to AIFF, the I-League Division 1 and 2 will be merged and a total of 40 teams across 5 zones of the country. The Indian Women’s League (IWL) Division 1 and 2 is already in progress.
(eom)
