CHENNAI: In the lead-up to the Executive Committee of the All India Football Federation (AIFF)'s meeting on Thursday over including I-League outfit Churchill Brothers, 14 Indian Super League clubs have written to the body expressing concern over the same.
With less than 72 hours before the long-delayed 2025/26 season kicks off, another controversy may well be brewing, with Churchill apparently requesting an inclusion.
It needs to be noted that the Goa-based club were provisionally awarded the first place finish in the I-League ahead of Inter Kashi. Kashi, who got four points deducted by the AIFF's appeals committee had challenged the order at the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS). There, the tribunal had ruled in favour of the club, directing the AIFF to hand the title to Kashi and award them promotion to the ISL.
As per a letter addressed to a Executive Committee member (ExCo) and two co-opted Committee members attempting to expedite Churchill's request, a meeting at noon on Thursday will convene to discuss the same.The meeting which was supposed to take place on Monday, February 9, was postponed due to 'lack of quorum.'
ISL Clubs in letter to the AIFF, which this daily has a copy of, had listed out reasons behind their objection of adding Churchill — lack of sporting merit, financial and operational viability of clubs, lack of defined legal and regulatory framework for such inclusions and disruption of sporting calendar and format to name a few.
"Any increase in the number of participating clubs at this stage would necessarily alter the competition format, scheduling matrix and operational planning that have already been prepared and acted upon the clubs," the letter signed by clubs' CEOs state.
Such actions by the AIFF may set a wrong precedent in the country's footballing pyramid, the letter went on to contend. "Permitting entry outside a structured sporting mechanisim would open the door for similar claims across football pyramid and create continuing uncertainty in league composition, which is particularly destrablising during the present transistional phase of Indian football governance," the letter added. Apart from this, the decision of adding the club would also undermine sporting merit, the clubs have said. "Any mid-cycle or ad-hoc inclusion of a club outside of an established sporting pathway undermines competitive integrity and sets a precedent contrary to merit-based participation, thereby compromising credibility of the competition," the letter added.
It remains to be seen the outcome of the Executive committee's meeting.
