Institutional League to commence from January 2024

AIFF had initially announced about the Institutional League in May.

The AIFF’s Competition Committee met virtually on Tuesday, September 5, 2023, to discuss the way forward for various domestic competitions in the country.

In presence were AIFF Secretary General Dr Shaji Prabhakaran along with Deputy Secretary General Mr Satyanarayan M. Members of Competition Committee, Mr. Mohan Lal (Chhattisgarh), Mr. Syed Imtiaz Husain (Bihar), Mr. K Neibou Sekhose (Nagaland), Mr. Bikramjit Purkayastha (Delhi), and Aslam Ahmed Khan (Karnataka), attended the meeting. 

The Committee recommended the introduction of the Institutional Football League for the first time in the country, which could be launched in January 2024. The league will be a pan-India amateur football competition to boost institutional football and encourage players’ recruitment by Private Corporations, Public Sector units, State Departments, Ministerial Unites, Police/Defence/Paramilitary Forces (Unit-Level) and Railways (Division-level). 

A single-division competition format will be followed if fewer than 16 teams are selected. In the event that more than 16 teams participate in the league, a multiple division format will be followed. The first division will have 10 teams and the promotion-relegation system between the divisions will be applicable. Furthermore, the Committee recommended that the League format be decided in consultation with the selected teams. The winners and runners-up teams will be awarded direct entry into the Federation Cup 2024. 

The committee also recommended that the hosts State Associations for the final rounds of the Senior Men’s/Women’s National Football Championships should be exempted from participating in the group stages of the competition.