The Supreme Court set 22 August to hear the dispute between the All India (AIFF) and Football Sports Development Limited (FSDL) in the renewal of the Indian Super League (ISL). The dead end left the 11 league clubs in uncertainty, with the upcoming season hung in balance until the brightness was achieved.
The case reached the Supreme Court after the ISL clubs caused an alarm in a letter to AIFF and warned that without renewing an agreement, The league “cannot occur” and their operations faced an existential crisis. The clubs also criticized the federation for abandoning them from the discussions with FSDL and claiming that player contracts, sponsorship and commercial shops were already at risk.
Constitution and AIFF U-Turn
The President AIFF Kalyan Chaubey initially suggested that the Federations could continue to manage Isl if the FSDL agreement fell. However, this attitude quickly disintegrated in court. The leader of the advocate Gopal Sankaranarayanan, who appeared for clubs, reminded the bench that the AFF constitution itself banned the federation unilaterally operating a commercial league.
“The Constitution clarifies that it cannot control the Isl or any league without involvement of an authorized entity. Any attempt would be a violation of its laws,” Sankaranarayan said.
Its submission stressed that Article 19 of the AIFF Statute requires the approval and alignment of the Executive Committee with the FIFA and AFC rules before sanctioning any competition. Under pressure, the AIFF was forced to withdraw his earlier position and acknowledge that he could not circumvent his contractual obligations.
What is at stake on Indian football?
For clubs, the result of this distance could decide not only on their financial stability, but also on the career of hundreds of Indian players. With training camps delayed and sponsorship in Limbo, uncertainty has already penetrated the home football calendar.
Standoff also risk is damaging India’s reputation in Asian football circles at a time when the development of the national team was under control. When the Supreme Court enters, the judgment will bring the consequences far beyond Isl and potentially form the administration and the commercial future of Indian football itself.
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Published:
Debodinna Chakracorty
Published on:
August 18, 2025
