I-League 2024-25: Sreenidhi Deccan face Gokulam Kerala in season-opening Southern Derby

Published at :October 24, 2024 at 12:14 AM

Modified at :October 24, 2024 at 12:26 AM

After an unprecedented delay, the initial list for games in the second tier of Indian football has been announced.

The 18th edition of the I-League is knocking at the door. India’s second-tier league is gearing up to reveal its latest season after a gap of more than seven months.

The 12-team league operates as the midpoint for promotion and relegation into the Indian Super League (ISL) and I-League 2 respectively.

Reigning champions Mohammedan Sporting achieved promotion to the top tier this season while NorthEastern duo Neroca FC and TRAU FC found their way into the third tier.

Sporting Bengaluru and legendary Goan club Dempo SC are the latest entrants into the I-league after securing the top two spots in I-league 2 after 14 matches.

Dempo SC are the most successful side in the league’s history, having won three titles. They will return to the I-league for the first time since their withdrawal in the 2016-17 season, while Sporting Bengaluru has climbed up the stairs through the BDFA Super Division, I-league 3, and I-league 2. It will be Sporting Bengaluru’s first-ever I-league season, and they will be aiming to make it count.

I-league fixtures revealed

The league has released its fixtures for the 2024-25 season a month before kicking off proceedings. The first game will be between Sreenidhi Deccan FC and two-time champions Gokulam Kerala FC at the Deccan Arena in Hyderabad.

Antonio Lopez Habas’s Inter Kashi will begin their title hunt with a clash against Sporting Bengaluru.

The most anticipated fixture of the season will see the top two title contenders, Inter Kashi and Sreenidhi Deccan, take on each other in Kolkata on December 20.

Three-time champions Dempo SC will host two-time champions Gokulam Kerala on January 14, 2025. Aizawl FC will take on Shillong Lajong in an evening clash on January 30, 2025. The Goan derby between Dempo SC and Churchill Brothers will be played on March 19.

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