AFC slot for Super Cup, to be played simultaneously with ISL next season

PANAJI: The All India Football Federation (AIFF) has confirmed that this edition of the Super Cup will have a continental playoff spot on offer for the champions.
The Super Cup, a season-end competition for teams from the Indian Super League (ISL) and I-League, had nothing on offer for the participants with clubs showing little enthusiasm. Many chose to field reserve sides or all-Indian teams as foreigners packed their bags for home. The next edition in Kochi, however, will see teams with a chance to qualify for the AFC Cup, Asian football’s second-tier club competition after the AFC Champions League.
According to AIFF, winners of the Super Cup will play 2021-2022 I-League champions Gokulam Kerala FC for a place in the 2023-24 AFC Cup group stage. If Gokulam Kerala win the Super Cup, they will get automatic qualification.
The Super Cup, featuring 16 teams in the group stage, will take place from April 8-25 in Kerala. Two of the three cities among Kochi, Kozhikode and Thiruvananthapuram will host the tournament, while the qualifying round will commence on April 3.
All 11 ISL teams and the I-League champions will get direct entry into the group stage. Teams placed second to tenth in I-League will compete in the qualifying rounds.
From next season, the Super Cup will no longer remain a season-end competition.
“As per our roadmap we envision a Cup competition. The Cup competition should exist like in any mature football nation. We have to see that it happens simultaneously (with the leagues). It gives everyone a new challenge and adds a variety to the whole competitive environment,” AIFF secretary general Shaji Prabhakaran told TOI on Tuesday.
The 2022-23 edition will mark the return of the Super Cup after four years.
FC Goa emerged champions in the previous edition in 2019, getting the better of Chennaiyin FC 2-1 at the Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneswar. Bengaluru FC won the inaugural edition in 2018.
The Super Cup has seen surprises in the past with I-League teams putting it across big-budgeted ISL sides. With more teams expected to be involved in the future, the magic of Cup competitions could kick off as well.
“We can have more teams, also teams from lower divisions. We have seen beautiful stories in England, lower division teams beating the Premier League clubs. That creates excitement. We have to see how we can add more teams to the competition, so that the real personality of the Cup is on show. It will be win-win for everyone. Commercially, it can be a big piece as well,” said Prabhakaran.