FSDL proposes 10-year no relegation plan in new ISL ownership proposal

The Football Sports Development Limited (FDSL), marketing partner of the All India Football Federation (AIFF), has proposed a new ownership structure for the Indian Super League (ISL) starting next season.

The FSDL, in a 22-page draft document submitted in March, has proposed at least a 10-year moratorium on relegation from the top tier to the lower leagues for its success.

AIFF had signed a 15-year Master Rights Agreement (MRA) with FDSL in 2010 which is set to expire in December this year. As per the agreement FSDL guarantees an annual payment of Rs 50 crore.

FDSL has proposed a new holding be formed that governs, operates, commercialises and funds ISL, with clubs (60%, equal across all clubs), FSDL (26%) and AIFF (14%) as the shareholders.

According to TOI, a key condition in the proposal, officially submitted to AIFF, is to exclude relegation from ISL to the lower tiers. Promotion to the top-tier ISL will be only for clubs who strictly meet the financial/licensing criteria and has been in existence for at least five years under the same ownership.

Launched in 2014, ISL has remained a closed league with no club getting relegated. According to the roadmap agreed in 2019 to facilitate growth of domestic club football, promotion was started from the 2022-23 season with the I-League winners - Punjab FC first and Mohammedan Sporting Club later - qualifying for the top tier on merit.

“The roadmap was agreed in front of senior AFC (Asian Football Confederation) officials at its headquarters in Malaysia. In its recommendation for 2024-25, it was agreed to fully implement promotion and relegation into the top league. It will be difficult now to go back to the AFC and seek special approval for more years without relegation or conditional promotion,” a senior official was quoted as saying by TOI.

This season’s ISL was scheduled to begin on September 14, as per the calendar approved by the AIFF League Committee last month. However, there is uncertainty over the future of the league after several club owners were told by FSDL that the league will not kick off, unless there’s clarity on the MRA.

In April, the AIFF had formed an eight-member task force to look into the MRA negotiations, a move that did not find favour with some members.

FSDL has told AIFF that they will discontinue with the current MRA structure which includes commercial rights for all competitions to FSDL for a fixed minimum guarantee. The new proposal includes rights, through a joint venture, for only the ISL and national team competitions, while the federation retains 100% of the revenue from non-ISL competitions and non-national team competitions.