The League Committee members met under the Chairmanship of Mr. Subrata Dutta at AIFF Headquarters, Football House, Dwarka, New Delhi on Wednesday (July 5, 2017). The Committee unanimously took the following decisions:
The I-League and the Indian Super League will be held simultaneously for the 2017-18 season and would kick-off after the completion of the FIFA U-17 World Cup India 2017.
The Committee also deliberated on the proposal from various PSUs to conduct an Institutional/Corporate League for the PSUs and Corporates, starting from the 2017-18 season and unanimously agreed on the proposal to organise the league under the aegis of AIFF, subject to all expenses being borne by the participating teams.
A task force was formed to oversee the operation, marketing and promotion of I-League 2017-18. The task force comprises the Chairman of the League Committee, the Vice-Chairman of the League Committee, a member from FSDL and the AIFF General Secretary and the CEO, I-League, as ex officio members.
The Committee asked the AIFF General Secretary to discuss with Asian Football Confederation as to how they would like to operationalise the future roadmap for Club Football in India and empowered him to form the task force for the purpose if required.
Meanwhile, it was confirmed by FSDL that the I-League would be broadcast on the Star Sports platform with much-improved production quality.
The Committee also stated that the scheduling of the ISL and I-League matches needs to be discussed and finalised with Star Sports, FSDL and I-League department.
The Committee also approved the allocation of funds to I-League clubs as follows:
· Travel subsidy: Rs. 50 lakhs per club
· Special subsidy: Rs. 20 lakhs per club
· Central Marketing expenditure of Rs. 1 crore by AIFF, subject to the clubs submitting their local marketing plan to the Federation before AIFF placing the Central Marketing expenditure to the AIFF Finance Committee.
Relating to diverse views on the number of foreign players to be playing in the League, the Committee decided the matter should be referred to the AIFF Executive Committee for a final decision as it falls under the purview of the AIFF Executive Committee.
The Committee also decided that the format and timing of the proposed Super Cup/Champions Cup be finalised after reviewing the calendar of the SAFF Championships to be held in Bangladesh in 2018, and further discussions with FSDL.
