‘Forced to review commitment to league’: ISL clubs, AIFF fail to reach consensus on club-led model

File photo of AIFF and ISL Trophy. (Agency photo) New Delhi: The Indian Super League (ISL) and the All India Football Federation (AIFF) failed to reach an agreement on the club-led model proposed by 13 of the 14 clubs. East Bengal, the ISL champions, are the only club not to sign the draft. The meeting was held in Kolkata with the participation of club management and AIFF administrators in person or virtually.Subsequently, the AIFF informed the clubs that they will seek general body approval during the SGM tomorrow (May 23) to negotiate a 15+5 year commercial rights deal with Genius Sports. In a post on social media, the clubs said: “It is with deep concern and disappointment that Indian Super League clubs wish to state that due to the continued uncertainty surrounding professional football in India, we are now forced to review the extent of our commitment to the league beyond the current season.”Odisha FC, Bengaluru FC, Kerala Blasters, FC Goa, Mumbai City FC, SC Delhi posted on social media. Meanwhile, Mohun Bagan Super Giant, Chennaiyin FC, East Bengal, NorthEast United, Jamshedpur FC, Inter Kashi, Punjab FC have not made it public at the time of writing.A source following the developments told TimesofIndia.com that the AIFF continues to favor the Genius Sports proposal and does not want to give the club-led model a chance. In addition, the governing body announced its intention to collect a participation fee of 1 million rupees from the 14 clubs. As a result, the AIFF earns Rs 26 crore annually, which it claims will be used to develop the ecosystem and run the ISL.The ISL clubs now plan to send a letter to the AIFF suggesting that no decision be taken on the commercial rights deal. At the same time, they did not rule out the possibility of going to court.“Our clubs have consistently invested in Indian football, often in difficult and uncertain circumstances, and remain deeply committed to its future. However, the continued absence of structural certainty, commercial clarity and long-term visibility make it increasingly difficult to justify the financial and operational commitments required to compete sustainably,” the social media post continued.“Indian football has a much bigger foundation than it does today. It is therefore disappointing that those who built, funded, promoted and maintained the league continue to face uncertainty about the very structure within which they are expected to operate.READ ALSO: “We also try to provide for our families” – Sandesh Jhingan“At the heart of the future of Indian football must be a financially sustainable league. Clubs have proposed an alternative modelwhich we believe is credible, constructive and worthy of evaluation on merit, along with any other proposal before AIFF.“We call on the AIFF to recognize the reality facing those who fund and run the league and work together to create a framework that is sustainable, inclusive and built with all stakeholders in mind,” the social media post continued.Clubs have already said they are staring at going out of business if the league’s economic realities don’t change soon.