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The 2026-26 season of I-League will be played in a two-stage format, akin to the 2020/21 and 2021/22 campaigns.
I-League Trophy. (x)
The second flight of Indian football, the I-League, is set to resume on the 21st of February!
The 2026-26 season of I-League will be played in a two-stage format, akin to the 2020/21 and 2021/22 campaigns.
The league stage will feature all the clubs playing out a single-leg round-robin format before the top 6 teams secure their berth in the championship round, with the bottom six moving into the relegation round.
The clubs have also proposed that the league be rebranded as the ‘Indian Football League’, pending approval from the All India Football Federation.
The I-League sought emergency clearance of the request by the Executive Committee to ratify the new format and the governing council, in which the club-led governance body will run the league and managing committee.
Reports suggest that three club, Aizwal FC, Churchill Brothers and Chanmari FC were not part of the meeting.
The governing council will include representatives from Gokulam Kerala FC, Namdhari FC, Rajasthan United FC, Diamond Harbour FC, Real Kashmir FC, Shillong Lajong FC, Sreenidi Deccan FC, Aizawl FC, Dempo SC.
“This is a landmark decision, though it still requires approval from the AIFF Executive Committee,” said Shillong Lajong owner Larsing Ming at the press conference.
“We are making a fresh start with the league, with clubs taking a major role in its management, similar to other top leagues worldwide like the English Premier League.” This announcement comes amid a crisis in Indian football after the AIFF and its previous commercial partner, FSDL, failed to renew the Master Rights Agreement (MRA) beyond December 8 last year.
The top-tier Indian Super League (ISL), organised by FSDL, and the I-League were paused and later restarted following the intervention of the sports ministry.
The ISL is set to begin on February 14, a week before the I-League (Indian Football League).
The country’s top-tier league was originally called the National Football League (NFL), which ran from 1996 to 2007, when it was rebranded as the I-League. The ISL started in 2014 and became the top-tier league, relegating the I-League to the second tier.
Diamond Harbour of West Bengal and Chanmari FC of Mizoram were promoted from the I-League 2024-25, making it an 11-club affair for a truncated 2025-26 season.
There is uncertainty whether Goa’s Churchill Brothers will compete this season. Initially announced as the previous I-League champions and promoted to the ISL, they were later replaced by Inter Kashi following a ruling by the Court of Arbitration for Sports (CAS). Churchill has taken the matter to the Delhi High Court against the AIFF, and the case is still pending.
“We are not sure of one club, but it is more or less certain that 10 clubs will participate this season. Eight clubs have fully agreed, and the other two are almost on board after our collective decision this morning,” Ming added.
The 10 clubs are Diamond Harbour, Chanmari FC, Real Kashmir, Gokulam Kerala, Rajasthan United, Dempo SC, Namdhari FC, Shillong Lajong, Sreenidi Deccan, and Aizawl FC.
The final number of participating clubs will be confirmed after February 2, the deadline for clubs to pay their share of the total cost for the 2025-26 season.
The total cost for the 2025-26 season is set at Rs 3.25 crore, with clubs required to contribute 60 per cent (around Rs 2 crore), meaning each club’s share will be approximately Rs 20 lakh.
The AIFF’s share is set at 40 per cent (30 per cent + 10 per cent), as it is unlikely to secure a commercial partner to contribute 30 per cent before the league starts.
(With Inputs From Agencies)
January 28, 2026, 19:51 IST
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