ISL: Cornered AIFF accepts club-led model for four years

Panaji: The All India Football Federation (AIFF) accepted a club-led model to run the Indian Super League (ISL) from next season at a meeting convened by sports minister Mansukh Mandaviya in New Delhi on Monday.
The agreement will be for four years with each club paying Rs 1.1 crore every season. Should all 14 teams take part, AIFF will receive Rs 15.4 crore, which can be used to cover the costs associated with the regulatory functions that federation is required to discharge in its capacity as the governing body, including refereeing, legal, integrity and anti-doping support.
“It was a good meeting,” a senior club official told TOI after two separate meetings with the sports minister and later AIFF officials. “The clubs got what they wanted. Now the plan is to ensure that the (league) structure is constitutionally compliant and operates entirely within the framework of the AIFF Constitution and AFC/FIFA regulations.”
According to sources, AIFF was keen on receiving upwards of Rs 20 crore from the participating clubs. But clubs, bolstered by support from the sports ministry and the stand of owners, stuck to their guns.
Except for Jamshedpur FC, all clubs attended the meeting with the sports minister. Newly-promoted Diamond Harbour were also in attendance, though with the Kolkata-based club under investigation for illegal practices and finances, there is no confirmation on their participation. Should action be initiated against the Indian Football League (IFL) champions, the league will go ahead with 13 teams.
Mohammedan Sporting Club (MSC), who finished at the bottom of the Indian Super League table, have been relegated. They were not invited for the meeting. “Relegation is a constitutional requirement and cannot be changed,” said the official.
ISL champions East Bengal made a plea for a 16-team top tier football league.
According to several club officials who attended the meeting, former AIFF president Praful Patel played an instrumental role in the sports minister and AIFF accepting the club-led model. “His presence at the meeting was a key factor,” said a club CEO. “Without him, it would have been very difficult. The minister was also sympathetic to the clubs.”
Sports minister Mansukh Mandaviya told the gathering he had personally invited Patel – formerly AFC vice president and member of the FIFA Council -- to offer insights and help find a common ground.
Meanwhile, the clubs said they are open to engaging in a conversation with Genius Sports and would be pleased to offer them first preference for Indian football data rights. The London-headquartered data company has bid Rs 64.4 crore annually with 5% increase every year – totalling approx. Rs 2,130 crore across 20 years – for commercial rights of ISL and Federation Cup.