Indian football stands at a crossroads, gripped by confusion. The Indian Super League (ISL) – the top tier of the Indian league system – stares at an uncertain future, with the league put on hold. The All India Football Federation (AIFF) and Football Sports Development Limited (FSDL), the private body that runs the league, have been at loggerheads over its functioning, with the existing 15-year Master Rights Agreement (MRA) signed in 2010 set to expire on December 8, 2025.

With FSDL no longer finding the Rs 50 crore annual payout to AIFF a viable option due to the declining financial benefits of running the league – and the national federation unwilling to change its stance – tensions have escalated. Even though AIFF has agreed to retain ISL’s top-tier league status in the future, they are not on the same page with FSDL about the promotion and relegation system, with the latter insisting on a closed league.

Since ISL was granted top-tier national league status in 2019, the promotion system came into effect in the 2022–23 season, with Punjab FC and Mohammedan Sporting advancing to the league. But the relegation system remains ineffective.

No progress in the negotiations can be materialised due to legal complications as well. Since the Supreme Court took charge of drafting a new constitution and directed the AIFF not to sign any fresh agreement with FSDL until a verdict is passed regarding the running of the national league, footballers and people who depend on the ISL to support their families stare at an uncertain future. The clubs, too, are in a fix.

With the final verdict on the affairs of Indian football expected on July 18, everyone watches on with anxious faces. Not many feel free to speak up. Instead, they whispered and opted for encrypted channels to express their concerns to Sunil Chhetri, the face of Indian football for more than two decades now. He was bold enough to raise those concerns on their behalf.

“Everybody is scared,” Chhetri wrote in a lengthy social media post. “I have received a flurry of texts from players, staff members, physios, masseurs – not just from my club, but from other clubs as well. Everybody in the Indian football ecosystem is worried, hurt, scared about the uncertainty we are faced with.”

While some clubs remain hopeful of a breakthrough, others are unsure. NorthEast United FC, the defending champions of the Durand Cup, have already begun their preparations in their pursuit to defend the oldest football tournament in Asia.

“What is clear in front of me is that I have a Durand Cup, which is part of the AIFF calendar, and I have to prepare myself for that. What is going to happen, nobody can say anything about it till the time we have certain things which are dependent on the ruling of the Honourable Supreme Court. I prefer to prepare for things that are in front of me rather than worry about how to prepare for something you don’t know about,” NEUFC CEO Mandar Tamhane, quoted by The Indian Express.

FC Goa, who are set to face Al Seeb Club from Oman in the AFC Champions League Two preliminary stage qualifier, are currently focused on their preparations for the continental event. But beyond that, they do not see anything positive. “We keep working with them until someone tells us otherwise, that the league is not to go ahead this year,” said FC Goa CEO Ravi Puskur.

Mohun Bagan, the other Indian club competing in AFC Champions League Two this year, are set to begin their preparations for the tournament from the first week of August. In between, they will play in the Durand Cup.

However, the Durand Cup, the season opener, has been hit by the deadlock, as Chennaiyin FC pulled out of the competition, along with Chhetri’s Bengaluru FC, Kerala Blasters, Odisha FC, Mohammedan Sporting, Hyderabad FC, and Mumbai City FC. These clubs are hesitant to spend on preparations, as there is no certainty the ISL will take place.

Chennaiyin FC not only pulled out of the Durand Cup but also stopped the process of negotiating with foreign players. So have Jamshedpur FC, Odisha FC, and Hyderabad FC, whose hopes of shifting base from Hyderabad to Delhi have also been hit by the deadlock. The stakeholders of Indian football now stares at Supreme Court verdict, expected to be announced today.