After months of deliberations, the All Indian Football Federation (AIFF) is finally set to announce its plans for the merger of the I-League and Indian Super League. After two hugely successful seasons of the ISL, the voices had grown louder in favour of the
amalgamation of the two tournaments. Following the success of the ISL, the I-League too has seen encouraging signs with a 40 per cent increase in its viewership this year. Taking the cue, the AIFF officials have moved swiftly to hold talks with the officials
of Football Sports Development Limited (the parent body of ISL) to sign a merger deal for a joint league in 2017. If the talks do have a positive outcome, the ongoing I-league season
would be the last.
Although it has not been put on record, reports suggest that
the federation has even mooted a tentative structure with the
combined league featuring 11 teams -- the eight ISL franchises
plus three top I-League sides. The initial talks suggest that
teams such as East Bengal, Mohun
Bagan and Bengaluru FC will be
included in the ISL setup and the
remaining teams, including Goan
clubs Salgaocar FC and Sporting
Clube de Goa, will play a second division
league which will give them a
chance to gain promotion to the top
division.
The plan seems good enough for
the AIFF but they will naturally face
a lot of resistance from the clubs
that are left out. They will have to justify the criteria that includes
just three clubs and drops a majority. If one goes by the
logic that only past I-League champions be included in the elite
league, it will be injustice to a team like Salgaocar, who are past
champions and have a rich legacy in Indian football.
To avoid any backlash, the AIFF is tight-lipped about their
plans. Curiously, the federation has not included the I-League
clubs in the talks. However, many top-ranking AIFF officials
have confirmed that the merger talks are at an advanced stage.
Initially, the time frame set for the merger was 2-3 years but the
AIFF is keen to hold the combined league soon after the Under-
17 FIFA World Cup that will be held in the country next year.
The league will be conducted as per the guidelines of Asian
Football Confederation (AFC). That means each team will be
allowed to recruit and play only four foreigners, which will include
one of Asian origin. It is also reported that the budget for
each of the participating teams will not exceed Rs 18 crore per
season. The I-League clubs spend around Rs 11-12 crore each
season on average. So it means they will have to step up to the
plate and spend significantly more for a single season.
The clause about the limit on the foreign players in a team
is a contentious one. There are fears that having the tournament
as per AFC guidelines -- playing only four foreigners --
will bring down the quality of football in the league. The ISL,
which is a private league, allows six foreigners in the playing
eleven which sustains the quality of football.
However, the AIFF will have to take the middle path and formulate
guidelines that adhere to the AFC rule book. The league
is expected to roll out sooner than anticipated, but it should
deliver quality which can raise the profile of the game in India.
