AIFF Approves Club-Led ISL Model In Principle, 2026-27 Season To Begin On September 4

The All India Football Federation (AIFF) has agreed "in principle" to a proposal from Indian Super League (ISL) clubs for a two-year club-led model , paving the way for the smooth conduct of the country's premier football competition and clearing uncertainty surrounding its immediate future.

AIFF Deputy Secretary General M Satyanarayan said the federation has conveyed its approval to the Sports Ministry and expects a formal agreement to be signed and announced on June 15 , after legal and operational details are finalised.

He confirmed that the 2026-27 ISL season will begin on September 4 , while the Durand Cup is scheduled to be held from June 25 to July 25 .

The development follows a meeting chaired by Sports Minister Mansukh Mandaviya, who had asked the AIFF and ISL clubs to formulate a structured plan for at least the next two seasons of the league. The clubs subsequently proposed a club-led pilot model for the 2026-27 and 2027-28 seasons as an interim arrangement before a long-term commercial framework was decided.

Under the proposed structure, the clubs will oversee the league's commercial operations, while the AIFF will continue to own, operate and regulate the competition. Federation officials stressed that all core regulatory functions, including refereeing, legal and integrity oversight, anti-doping support, player registration and compliance with FIFA and AFC regulations, will remain exclusively under the AIFF.

An AIFF official said the arrangement is intended to support clubs that have incurred significant financial losses while ensuring that the federation's authority as the governing body of Indian football remains intact. The model will be reviewed after two years before any decision is taken on extending or modifying it.

The clubs had opposed the AIFF's plan to award ISL commercial rights to London-based Genius Sports, which emerged as the highest bidder after the federation floated a tender earlier this year. Instead, the clubs proposed acquiring the commercial rights themselves for two seasons and paying the AIFF Rs 15 crore annually to cover its regulatory responsibilities.

The AIFF said discussions involving the clubs and Genius Sports will continue, while fresh tenders will also be required for broadcast rights. The upcoming season is expected to be a full seven-month competition , featuring home-and-away matches among all 14 participating teams .