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The I-League will be restructured and rechristened as the Indian Football League (IFL) from the upcoming season starting February 21, with clubs becoming majority stakeholders. The decision was taken during a meeting between AIFF officials and club representatives and is pending formal approval from the AIFF Executive Committee.

New Delhi: The I-League, the country's second-tier football competition, will be restructured and rechristened as Indian Football League (IFL), with the clubs becoming majority stakeholders in the venture from the upcoming season beginning February 21.

A decision to rechristen the I-League was taken during a meeting of the club representatives and All India Football Federation (AIFF) officials on Wednesday. It was later announced during a press conference here.

The AIFF's Executive Committee is yet to approve the decision though it is just a formality.

"We have decided in today's meeting that the I-League will be restructured and rechristened as Indian Football League. It is a landmark decision, though it will need the approval from the AIFF Executive Committee," said Shillong Lajong owner Larsing Ming at the press conference.

"We are making a fresh start of the league. The clubs themselves will majorly involve in running the league just like it is done in other top leagues of the world like the English Premier League."

The announcement came in the backdrop of 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 only to restart after 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 National Football League (NFL) which ran from 1996 to 2007 when it was re-branded as I-League. The ISL started in 2014 and it became the top-tier league. The I-League became the country's second tier competition.

Diamond Harbour of West Bengal and Chanmari FC of Mizoram were promoted from the I-League 2024-25, making it an 11club affair for a truncated 2025-26 season.

There is a big question mark on whether Goa's Churchill Brothers would compete this season or not. They were initially announced as last edition I-League champions and promoted to the ISL.

But the Court of Arbitration for Sports (CAS) later ruled that Inter Kashi were the champions, and the Varanasi-based club was subsequently promoted to the ISL. Churchill had knocked the doors of the Delhi HC 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 take part this season. Eight clubs have 100 per cent agreed. The other two also more or less agreed just after we (eight clubs) took a 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.

How many clubs will ultimately participate will be known after February 2, which is the deadline for the clubs to pay their share of the total cost of running the 2025-26 season.

The total cost of the league for 2025-26 has been pegged at Rs 3.25 crore, out of which the clubs will have to contribute 60 per cent or around Rs 2 crore, which means each club's share will be around Rs 20 lakh.

The AIFF's share is set to be 40 per cent (30% + 10%), as the commercial partner which is to contribute 30 per cent is unlikely to be roped in before the start of the league.

Governing Council and Management Committee

The league will have Governing Council and Management Committee for the first time. The Governing Council will be a larger body which will be the final decision making body, while the Management Committee will be a smaller one to look after day-to-day affairs.

"The GC will have one representative each from all the participating clubs, plus three representatives from the AIFF, three from the commercial partners (whenever they come in) and two experts from outside," AIFF Deputy Secretary General M Satyanarayan said.

Number of matches and format

A total of 80 matches will be played if 11 clubs participate but it will be less than 70 if only 10 take part.

All the clubs will play in a single round robin league in home and away format. Some matches of a club will be at home and some away.

In the second phase, the clubs will be divided in two groups -- the top six in one and the remaining five in the other (considering participation of 11 clubs).

The top six from the first stage will again play in a single round robin format and the club which gets the highest point in the second phase will be declared the winners. In the second phase, the clubs will carry forward the points they have garnered in the first phase.

The club which was ranked higher in the first phase will get to play at home against a lower-ranked side in the second phase.

The bottom two finishers in the second group of five clubs after a single round robin format will be relegated to I-League 2.

(Except for the headline, this article has not been edited by FPJ's editorial team and is auto-generated from an agency feed.)