ISL clubs unsure of featuring in 2026-27 season
Teams urge AIFF to work collaboratively towards a framework that is sustainable, inclusive
Federation and clubs have been at loggerheads on having a commercial partner for ISL
Several Indian Super League (ISL) clubs have hinted that they are unsure of featuring in the 2026-27 season due to the continued uncertainty surrounding the domestic top-tier competition, saying they would "review the extent of their commitment to the league beyond the current season".
The ISL clubs had a meeting with the All India Football Federation (AIFF) top brass on Friday in Kolkata ahead of Saturday's Special General Body Meeting of the national body at the eastern metropolis.
The AIFF and the clubs have been at loggerheads on having a commercial partner for the ISL.
London-based Genius Sports had emerged as the highest bidder in March, promising Rs 2129 crore annually for the next 15+5 years, starting from 2026-27 season.
But the ISL clubs have proposed a different model. They want to keep 90 per cent of the "economic interest in the league structure" and AIFF the rest. They also want the highest bidders (Genius Sports) to stay as the league's data and technology partner only.
"With deep concern and disappointment, the clubs of the Indian Super League wish to state that, given the continued uncertainty surrounding professional football in India, we are now compelled to review the extent of our commitment to the league beyond the current season," said a joint statement posted on social media by the majority of the ISL clubs.
"Our clubs have consistently invested in Indian football, often in difficult and uncertain circumstances, and remain deeply committed to its future. However, the continued absence of structural certainty, commercial clarity and long-term visibility has made it increasingly difficult to justify the financial and operational commitments required to compete sustainably."
The just-concluded ISL which was won by East Bengal had 14 clubs. Mohammedan Sporting will be relegated after finishing in the bottom while Diamond Harbour will be promoted after winning the second tier Indian Football League.
The clubs urged the AIFF to work collaboratively towards a framework that is sustainable, inclusive and built with all stakeholders in mind.
"Indian football has the foundation to be far greater than it is today. It is therefore disappointing that those who have built, funded, promoted and sustained the league continue to face uncertainty over the very structure within which they are expected to operate. At the heart of Indian football's future must be a financially sustainable league.
"The clubs have proposed an alternative model which we believe is credible, constructive and worthy of being evaluated on merit, alongside any other proposal before the AIFF. We urge the AIFF to acknowledge the realities faced by those funding and operating the league, and work collaboratively towards a framework that is sustainable, inclusive and built with all stakeholders in mind," the statement read.
The just-concluded ISL was shortened to one-leg round-robin 13-match league for each team with East Bengal emerging the winner after the Master Rights Agreement between the AIFF and its former partners FSDL expired on December 2025. The 2025-26 season could see the light of the day due to the intervention of the sports ministry.
The ISL winning team was to get a direct group stage spot in the AFC Champions League 2, the continent's second tier club competition. But since the clubs did not play mandatory number of matches, a minimum of 24 matches in a season, East Bengal will have to feature in the play-offs round of the ACL 2 in 2026-27 season.
Super Cup champions FC Goa will also play in the play-offs round of the ACL 2 in 2026-27 season.
The truncated ISL 2025-26 was one of the reasons for the country getting just one slot in the third-tier AFC Challenge League in the 2027-28 season. The lone slot, which is meant for the winners of the upcoming ISL season (2026-27), is also for the play-off round and not a direct group stage berth.
Indian clubs have played in the top tier AFC Champions League and second tier AFC Champions League 2 in the past few years, but sadly, they have to play in the third level in 2027-28 along with teams from countries such as Pakistan, Bhutan, Nepal, Maldives and Bangladesh.
