ISL Clubs Ask Supreme Court Lawyers To Push For Urgent Judgment

Last Updated:August 21, 2025, 20:53 IST

Eleven ISL clubs including Bengaluru FC and Mumbai City FC urge Supreme Court for urgent judgment to resolve ISL's future, warning of existential crisis.

ISL Trophy

On Thursday, eleven Indian Super League (ISL) clubs urged the two senior lawyers assisting the Supreme Court in a pending case to highlight the existential crisis they face due to uncertainty over the league’s future, stressing the “urgency of pronouncing judgment at the earliest."

The ISL clubs sent the letter a day before the Supreme Court hearing on Friday. Amici curiae Gopal Sankaranarayanan and Samar Bansal had mentioned the matter on Monday, resulting in the case being scheduled for Friday.

The letter stated, “Given that football clubs (across the entire pyramid), their players, employees, and stakeholders are the most directly and immediately affected by the current standstill in Indian football, we have no option but to approach your good selves, as officers of the Hon’ble Court, to humbly request that our concerns be placed before the Ld. Bench."

The clubs emphasized the urgency of a judgment, “Given the football calendar is at a standstill across the pyramid; any consequential directions from the judgment should be completed within a time-bound period (15–30 days) to restore certainty at the earliest."

The letter also mentioned, “If the proceedings extend beyond August 22, 2025, the processes related to conducting the leagues and any ancillary operations should be expedited to achieve a long-term constructive solution for all parties at the earliest." The clubs clarified they are not parties to the case.

The eleven ISL clubs that signed the letter are Bengaluru FC, Hyderabad FC, Odisha FC, Chennaiyin FC, Jamshedpur FC, FC Goa, Kerala Blasters FC, Punjab FC, NorthEast United FC, Mumbai City FC, and Mohammedan Sporting.

Previously, these clubs warned the All India Football Federation (AIFF) of the potential shutdown due to uncertainty over the ISL’s future. The crisis began when FSDL, the ISL organisers and AIFF’s commercial partner, put the 2025-26 season “on hold" on July 11 due to uncertainty over the renewal of the Master Rights Agreement (MRA), causing at least three clubs to either pause first-team operations or suspend player and staff salaries.

The current MRA, signed in 2010 between FSDL and AIFF, ends on December 8. Under the MRA, AIFF receives Rs 50 crore annually from FSDL.

The clubs highlighted that the lack of clarity on the ISL has severely impacted their revenues, posing an immediate threat to their survival and jeopardizing the livelihoods of thousands involved in the football ecosystem, including players, staff, vendors, and service providers.

They warned, “Even one season’s disruption would erode the trust of fans, sponsors, investors, and international federations, undoing more than a decade’s progress."

The clubs have invested hundreds of crores of rupees in youth academies, training facilities, stadium upgrades, and professional squads, creating a robust footballing structure. “The ISL now sustains the majority of professional football players in India, providing more than 400 full-time player contracts annually, besides developmental pathways for youth and grassroots players."

They emphasized, “A league of this calibre cannot be assembled at the last minute and requires long-term buy-in to obtain the best possible deals. Broadcast agreements, sponsorship deals, player registrations, and logistical arrangements ideally require long-term buy-in and stability, and even thereafter approximately 6–8 weeks of advance certainty to implement every season. The current delay has already placed us in a situation where any further delays may cause irreparable harm. There is an urgent need for certainty in the greater interest of the entire football ecosystem, including clubs, players, staff, and all other stakeholders."

The clubs warned that losing even a single ISL season would have catastrophic and irreversible consequences for Indian football, affecting the well-being of players and staff, the professional league structure including the I-League and lower divisions, grassroots academies, and other football competitions, all of which depend on the stability of the top-tier competition.

Addressing the deadlock, the clubs noted, “This deadlock has indirectly arisen in the present case because, as we understand, there is a verbal stay/injunction on any discussions related to the MRA effective April 30, 2025."

“This has created an anomalous situation where no resolution or forward planning for the 2025–26 season and beyond can take place. As matters stand, there is no certainty beyond December 8, 2025, when the current commercial partner demits its term. At that point in the calendar, ordinarily less than a quarter of the season would have been completed, leaving the league and, by extension, the wider pyramid in complete limbo. For the entire footballing system, it is crucial that a long-term, stable solution is arrived at urgently."

The clubs stressed, “Clubs have multi-year sponsorships and contractual commitments, and several sponsors have already withdrawn due to the prevailing uncertainty. No commercial partner can be expected to invest or commit resources under an interim arrangement or for short term, given the sheer scale and complexity of organizing a tournament like ISL and securing long-term broadcast and sponsorship partnerships. Therefore, it is imperative the current proceedings be expedited to provide necessary certainty for the league."

(With PTI Inputs)

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First Published:

August 21, 2025, 20:52 IST

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