Owners, AIFF to meet over new Indian football league

Owners of India's leading clubs are expected to meet national football administrators next week to discuss the implications of a new franchise-based competition that could overshadow the existing I-League.

Pune FC owner Nandan Piramala said he wants to know "how such a league will benefit Indian football."

Piramal said the implementation of any new competition or format would require negotiations between club owners, the All India Football Federation and sponsors IMG-Reliance, who signed a $140 million deal in 2010 for the game's national marketing rights.

There has been media speculation that big names like David Beckham, Thierry Henry and Michael Owen could be associated with a condensed competition starting next January and based on the same concept as the widely successful Indian Premier League cricket competition.