Top three decisions taken at 2023 AIFF Annual General Meeting

The AIFF took some path-breaking decisions for the betterment of Indian football.

The All India Football Federation (AIFF) held its Annual General Meeting (AGM) at Bengaluru on July 4, 2023. The meeting was chaired by President Kalyan Chaubey and all the prominent members of the board were present as some interesting changes and decisions were announced.

The AGM is normally a meeting where the yearly profits or accomplishment of a board is announced. The AIFF did so as well as making some prominent announcements for their vision to further improve the state of Indian football over the next year.

It’s now quite clear that the new AIFF board is aiming to build a proper football structure in India, especially when it comes to the domestic front. The federation announced some implementations that they have decided upon for the upcoming campaign, and we look at the top 3 decisions taken at the AGM.

3. Major increase in AIFF’s budget

The AIFF announced in the AGM that it would be passing a significantly increased budget for the upcoming year. They passed a budget of ₹134 crore, marking an increase of nearly ₹50 crore from the 2022/23 financial year. The AIFF’s budget for the previous campaign was around ₹87 crore, which was termed as ‘meager’ by general secretary Shaji Prabhakaran. The increased budget for the AIFF can only be a positive thing for Indian Football.

It can allow them to allocate increased funds to the different leagues around the country, especially the lowly divisions that have struggled in the post-Covid-19 pandemic. They will also be able to fund more foreign camps for the junior teams or even put in more money to send the Indian national teams to other countries for more competitive games. With an increased budget, the AIFF can now remunerate the players and divisions more handsomely as well as improve the overall quality of football in India.

2. Significant changes to I-League structure

The AIFF appears to have some major changes planned for the 2023/24 I-League season. The competition is now officially the second division in India, but that hasn’t stopped he federation from planning to experiment with its structure. It has already been announced that five new teams – backed by corporate entities – will be debuting in the I-League next season. These will include teams like Inter Kashi (Varanasi), FC Bengaluru United and clubs from, Delhi and Haryana.

Alongside this, AIFF announced its decision to change the I-League’s structure to match that used in Major League Soccer (MLS). Indeed, the upcoming I-League will have a ‘conference style’ – which means teams will be divided based on which conference or part of India they represent. There could be an Eastern and Western Conference, most probably divided into two sets of eight teams.

This is all part of the federation’s expansion plans for the league. If they plot a similar style as the MLS, then the two conferences will have specific winners and certain teams will progress to the ‘playoff round’ after the end of the league stages. It remains to be seen how these changes are implemented, but the upcoming I-League season could be an intriguing affair.

1. Return of the Federation Cup

One of the biggest revelations made in the AGM was the AIFF’s desire to bring back the Federation Cup in the upcoming Indian football season. The Fed Cup last took place in the 2016/17 season, when Mohun Bagan reigned supreme. Ever since that, it was dismissed and replaced with the ‘Super Cup’ that took place after the league season was over. However, the federation is now aiming to streamline the major domestic cup competition to take place during the Indian Super League (ISL) season itself. Indeed, the AIFF announced that the Federation Cup will mark its return next season and they are holding talks to ensure the matches take place simultaneously alongside the ISL.

This will mark a similar style to what is followed around the top football leagues around the world. Moreover, keeping with the AFC rules, the winners of the Federation Cup will also be able to win qualification for the AFC Cup. The Federation Cup, which has been taking place since the late 1970s, is a competition close in the hearts of many Indian football fans – so the decision to bring it back is definitely a significant one and one appreciated by many.