Another season of the Indian Super League is over. Mumbai Football Club lifted the title after beating Mohun Bagan Super Giant on Saturday. There were moments of jubilation and thrilling encounters interspersed with a sprinkling of controversies. Despite all this, there is a substantial debate on the quality of football being played in the middle. The topic that is dominating the discussion is the issue of relegation from the league.
This was suggested by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) in its roadmap for improving Indian football and making it more competitive. Intriguing as it may sound, ISL is one of the few top-flight national leagues that does not have relegation. And that needs to begin by the next season. The other side of the move—promotion from the I-League—started last year, when Punjab FC (formerly RoundGlass Punjab) joined ISL.
However, the All India Football Federation (AIFF) is still not clear about it. Things got a little more circumspect after AIFF president Kalyan Chaubey said that ISL would not be ready for relegation unless the I-League raised its bar. It is understandable if there is no promotion, but relegation is needed to keep the bottom-of-the-league clubs motivated and busy. It would push the likes of Hyderabad FC, which won only one match this entire season.
One must also understand that AIFF runs the I-League—so if its standard is not good enough, they should concentrate on improving it. The I-League has been going on for over 15 years and was the premier league until ISL was given the top status. And the I-League is not without promise either. If its quality was so hopeless, the just-promoted Punjab FC would have finished at the bottom of the ISL; instead, there were four clubs including East Bengal, Jamshedpur and former champions Bengaluru below Punjab.
Even ISL teams scout from the I-League. It’s not that all ISL teams are doing well financially either—there was an exodus from Hyderabad FC when it failed to pay players. So the onus is on AIFF; the I-League’s supposed lack of quality should not be an excuse to not introduce relegation in ISL. Instead, AIFF should help nurture the I-League, which in turn will help ISL and, in the long run, the national team. To keep ISL healthy and kicking, other leagues need to prosper, too.