I-League gets upper hand over ISL in final draft constitution prepared by CoA

Panaji: The final draft constitution of the All India Football Federation (AIFF) seeks to accord the “seniormost top division league” status on the I-League and not the Indian Super League (ISL), which is the top tier at the moment.
Prepared by the three-member Committee of Administrators (CoA), the final draft which was sent to state associations and FIFA late on Wednesday, states that India’s top league will be the one managed by the federation.
“Seniormost top division league shall mean the league competition owned, operated, recognised and directly managed by the AIFF, that implements the principles of promotion and relegation, and meets all requirements prescribed by the AFC for being eligible to obtain a direct slot in the Asian Champions League,” states the draft AIFF constitution.
The draft also states that the “above functions/roles cannot be delegated or assigned to any other entity or organisation.”
Should the draft go unchallenged in the Supreme Court on July 21, the I-League, started in 2008, could enjoy top-tier status since it’s managed by the AIFF and has relegation/promotion for participating clubs at the moment.
The draft, though, has potential to raise a conflict with AIFF’s marketing partners, Football Sports Development Limited (FSDL), which runs ISL since its launch in 2014.
FSDL signed a Master Rights Agreement (MRA) worth Rs 700 crore with AIFF in 2010. According to the 15-year agreement, a “new league,” ISL now, would be the “most senior and prestigious football league in India”. There is also a clause that the existing league – I-League in this case – could be “reconstituted, replaced and/or discontinued (temporarily or permanently).”
Previously, Dr. SY Quraishi, the former chief election commissioner of India and now a member of the Supreme Court appointed CoA, had said that the constitution was drafted before the AIFF-AFC joint meeting in Kuala Lumpur in October 2019.
At the meeting of all stakeholders, it was agreed that ISL would be the top league, while promotion and relegation would start from 2024-25 when the 10-year agreement with existing franchises ends.
However, defending I-League champions Gokulam Kerala and two-time champions Churchill Brothers FC have both registered their objections with the CoA and said they have neither agreed nor signed any document pertaining to the proposed roadmap.
“The status of a league is rarely fixed in the constitution. It is surprising that such a mention has been made in the draft by the CoA,” said a member of a state association.
Another official who is aware of the discussions said the “seniormost top division league” has been mentioned in the constitution to keep the marketing partners under check, particularly since the ‘partnership’ between AIFF and FSDL, according to minutes of previous meetings, will continue for another 15-year period.