CHENNAI: It was just a matter of time! Football Sports Development Limited (FSDL), organisers of the Indian Super League, has announced plans to expand the league by up to three teams.
The plans are final confirmation of the long-standing rumours that the ISL will be played over five months next year, virtually sounding a death knell for the I-League.
Bids documents will be available from May 12 to 24, with May 25 being the last date for submission. Upto three new teams will be selected and bidders will have ten cities to choose from. “Bids are invited from prospective team owners in respect of 10-cities ie, Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Cuttack, Durgapur, Hyderabad, Jamshedpur, Kolkata, Ranchi, Siliguri and Thiruvananthapuram,” the statement issued by FSDL said.
Some of the cities selected lend credence to long-standing rumours about new teams — Ranchi appears to facilitate a bid by Mahendra Singh Dhoni while Jamshedpur backs up interest by the Tata group in acquiring a franchise.
The option of a second team from Kolkata, Siliguri and Durgapur appears to leave the door open for East Bengal and Mohun Bagan to enter. The document also stipulates that any team winning from Kolkata will have to play in another city for the next two seasons. But the most curious aspect of the document is how the upcoming season has been referred to as ‘2017-18’. Express understands that the next ISL season will be at least five months long. The I-League will be held simultaneously, but with most top players playing in ISL, the former will be a pale shadow of itself — in essence, if not officially, the second tier.
It is likely that the I-League will lose at least one of their biggest draws. While Bengaluru FC officials have been tight-lipped since expansion plans were announced, they have gone on record in the past, stating that they will be bidding from Bengaluru, should a slot open up. And while talks between ISL officials and the Kolkata clubs over transferring image and licensing rights to potential investors had broken down, there is always the chance that they can find a partner and launch a bid. The only silver lining for the I-League seems to be that Star Sports have reportedly agreed to broadcast it from next year, along with the ISL.
Former India captain Bhaichung Bhutia though believes the two-league structure represents a windfall for players. “Right now, the problem is that there are not enough chances,” he said. “The same set of players are playing in both I-League and ISL. But with both leagues at the same time, they will be in more demand. This will end up giving more opportunities to players.”
AFC slot for ISL?
Sources close to the AIFF revealed that plans were afoot to transfer at least one AFC slot to ISL. AIFF had earlier asked the Asian Football Confederation for an extra AFC Cup slot to be awarded to winners of a combined Super Cup featuring ISL and I-League teams. But that request was rejected. “ AIFF has written to the AFC regarding re-distribution of AFC slots between ISL and I-League. AFC is considering that,” sources said.
New cities in fray
Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Cuttack, Durgapur, Hyderabad, Jamshedpur, Kolkata, Ranchi, Siliguri and Thiruvananthapuram
vishnu.prasad@newindianexpress.com
