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During a meeting between the officials of the All India Football Federation (AIFF) and the representatives of the I-League and Indian Women's League (IWL) clubs on Thursday, tentative dates for the start of the respective leagues were discussed.
As proposed during the meeting, which was headed by AIFF President Kalyan Chaubey, the Hero I-League is likely to start in the first week of October. Last year, the second-tier league started on November 12, 2023, and went on till March 12, 2023.
Meanwhile, some major renovations to the current format of the ISL were proposed as promised previously by the AIFF. The upcoming edition of the women's competition will consist of two tiers.
The IWL will remain as the top-tier league with eight teams playing on a home-and-away basis, while a second division will come into place where the remaining eight teams from the 2022-23 IWL season and the state league winners will participate.
Furthermore, the women's competition will see the top two teams of the second division being promoted to the 2024-25 edition of the IWL. The tentative period suggested by the AIFF for the upcoming season of the top-tier league season is from November 18, 2023, to March 16, 2024. This will come as a huge boost for women's football as previously the tournament would last shorter than a month.
A discussion also took place regarding the possibility of having the I-League in different formats. However, a decision will only be made at a later date by the federation.
“This is a new dawn" - AIFF President Kalyan Chaubey during the meeting with I-League and IWL club officials
During the meeting, which was called to discuss the future of the I-League and IWL clubs, AIFF head Kalyan Chaubey promised that all these proposals were in order to help the leagues progress and take them to the next level.
“This is a new dawn, and the AIFF management is looking to take the leagues in the country to the next level. At times when we sit across the table, we tend to think only of what can benefit us, but we need to put all such differences aside and think of solutions that will benefit all parties involved here."
“I am sure all of you are looking for good players, quality administrators, quality media engagement, and so on. I am glad to tell all of you that this time we aim to do better for the Hero I-League and the Hero IWL,” the president further added.
There was some general advice that the AIFF had for I-League clubs that included improving their pitch conditions and having compulsory floodlights for their matches. A range of awards were also announced for the I-League - Best Pitch, Best Match Organisation, and Best Media Activities. The first prize for each category was announced as Rs 2.5 lakh, while that of the runners-up was Rs 1.5 lakh.
Meanwhile, for the women's teams, the introduction of club licensing before the season starts as per AFC norms was proposed by the AIFF in the meeting. The AFC requirements will, however, come into effect only from the 2024-25 season for the AFC Women’s Club Championship.
