Revisiting every penalty shootout in history of ISL

Some iconic games have been settled after dramatic tie-breakers.

Indian Super League (ISL) playoffs are full of edge-of-the-seat stuff. With herculean stakes on the line, teams often go all guns blazing. On a few occasions, the two-legged semi-finals have not been able to separate the sides and the tie has to be resolved with a penalty shootout.

Mumbai City FC reached their first-ever ISL final after triumphing against their rivals FC Goa through a penalty shootout in the ongoing 2020-21 playoffs. It reminds us of fixtures in the past that had to be decided through a tie-breaker.

Here's a look at all the penalty shootouts in the history of the competition:

FC Goa 2-4 Atletico de Kolkata (17th December, 2014)

The first-ever penalty shootout to take place in the ISL came in the inaugural season. FC Goa and Atletico de Kolkata played out two games without scoring a goal. Therefore, the second-leg of their semi-final clash progressed into a penalty shootout. The Kolkata-based outfit came away 4-2 victors and went on to lift the trophy in the final. 

Delhi Dynamos FC 0-3 Kerala Blasters FC (14th December, 2016)

https://youtu.be/gEZlsOoG2xQ

The second penalty shootout to take place came two years later in the third edition of ISL. Now defunct Delhi Dynamos FC and Kerala Blasters were inseparable after playing over two legs. Due to no away-goal rule, the 2-2 aggregate score meant the tie was decided by a penalty shootout. Eventually, Kerala Blasters came away as victors with three conversions to none by the Delhi-based outfit. 

Kerala Blasters 3-4 Atletico de Kolkata (18th December, 2016)

https://youtu.be/ZTjTpW2i-88

The Yellow Army were involved in another penalty shootout right after winning one in the semi-finals against Delhi Dynamos in ISL 2016. The Yellow Army, however, ended up on the losing side this time around. This was the first occasion when an ISL final was decided on penalties and the second time KBFC lost the crown to the Kolkata side in the final hurdle. 

Mumbai City FC 6 - 5 FC Goa (8th March, 2021)

https://youtu.be/d6Hdsc5gQf0

In the most-recent case, one of the fiercest rivalries in the league between Mumbai City FC and FC Goa was renewed in the semi-finals of the 2020-21 campaign. The tie was settled after a nerve-wrecking penalty shootout. The aggregate score of 2-2 led to a penalty shootout, which was eventually won by the Islanders, ensuring their first-ever entry into an ISL final. FC Goa have now played in three tie-breakers, most by any ISL club.