AIFF conclude I-League season, Mohammedan unhappy with decision

The Black Panthers were close to earning promotion but will now have to wait further.

The Indian football season officially comes to an end as the AIFF League Committee which met on Saturday suggested the executive committee to take the step and declare Mohun Bagan as I-League 2019-20 champions.

This declaration was possible only after the Mariners ran amok in the I-League and had an unassailable lead over the others teams until the point of suspension on March 14.

It was Papa Babacar Diawara's goal which handed a slender lead to the Mariners as they edged past Aizawl FC at home. However, that win was enough to declare the Green and Maroons champions, courtesy of the lead they already had over others.

It may seem that the AIFF League Committee may only have made a recommendation but the league regulations clearly state that if matters which are not provided for in regulations and cases of force majeure (coronavirus pandemic) in this case, shall be decided by the Committee and their decision on matters will be final.

The committee also decided that as the league did not conclude there will be no relegation and prize money apart from Mohun Bagan's championship part will be shared by the other 10 teams equally.

The Green and Maroons being champions will be handed over the championship prize money of ₹1 crore, while the remaining ₹1.25 crore which was kept for other three best place finishes will be equally divided among the 10 teams. Each side will get a sum of ₹12.5 lakh as their share for the season."

This was an easy decision to make. Apart from East Bengal, no club had objection to Mohun Bagan being crowned champions. In fact, East Bengal wanted the league to be null and void with the ₹2.5 crores getting distributed equally among the 11 teams.

"As per regulations, only the top four clubs are eligible for the prize money but it would have been unfair to freeze points position at this moment. If you look at the league standings, except for Indian Arrows all teams could have made it to the top four, if they played the remaining games," a senior AIFF official who was at the meeting told TOI.

The complex decision which the committee had to take was of the second division I-League, as clubs have the aim of qualifying for the top division but now with the season coming to a sudden end, it would affect them on multiple grounds.

The Committee, therefore, came up with a plan of conducting a shorter duration tournament next season to decide the qualification to the I-League, subject to approval from the AFC.

However, this decision by the Committee has surprised second division outfit Mohammedan Sporting who were leading the points table in group B with 12 points from six matches and were one of the contenders to qualify for the I-League next season.

"We have played so well in the 2nd Division so far, now AIFF says that the season is concluded and a short qualifying tournament next season with happen. This is really harsh on us. I think we deserve to get a promotion. The AIFF must look into it. We have such a huge heritage and history, we have proved this season by performing on the field," Black Panthers' technical director Dipendu Biswas told The Times of India.

The former Indian forward feels that the economic crisis due to the coronavirus pandemic has made it difficult for the club to hold onto their foreign and Indian players for next season.

"Due to the financial crisis in the club, how can we build a squad again for the next season. We are spending so much money on foreign and Indian players. We do not have any sponsors now. Our request to the federation will be to help us gain promotion looking at our performance," Biswas concluded.