A red card for the Indian Super League? Here's what’s at stake for Indian Football

Every time the Indian Super League (ISL) is mentioned, the question often emerges if it’s truly improving the national team and helping the cause of Indian football at large.

Sure, on paper, the progress isn’t as rapid as fans might have hoped for, but let us not forget where we’ve come from.

And yes, the All India Football Federation (AIFF) may bear some responsibility for that.

While the debate about the league’s impact on the national team’s performance lingers, there is no denying the significant changes it has brought to the financial landscape of football in India.

And while endless shortcomings and challenges could well be listed, one thing is clear – the ISL has provided stability, opportunities, and growth for a sector that was once neglected.

The future of Indian football is currently caught in a legal battle playing out in the Supreme Court of India, centred around the AIFF constitution.

In 2022, following years of delayed elections, governance concerns, and alleged violations of the National Sports Code, the Supreme Court stepped in and dissolved the AIFF Executive Committee. A Committee of Administrators (CoA) was appointed to oversee the federation’s functioning and draft a new constitution that aligns with both FIFA guidelines and Indian law.

This led to a temporary suspension by FIFA for third-party interference, which was reversed after the CoA stepped aside and fresh elections were conducted. But the constitutional review continued.

The Supreme Court is now hearing final arguments on the draft AIFF constitution, which will decide how the federation is governed, how elections are conducted, and how voting rights are distributed among stakeholders (such as state associations, players, and clubs).

During the final hearings, the court ordered that no decisions be made on the renewal of the Master Rights Agreement (MRA) between AIFF and its commercial partner Football Sports Development Limited (FSDL) — the entity that runs the ISL — until a final verdict is delivered (which is expected by mid-July 2025).

This has thrown the future of the ISL 2025-26 season into uncertainty, raising serious concerns across the Indian football ecosystem — from investors to players, clubs to fans.

If the league were to end, the consequences would extend far beyond the pitch.

Let’s take a deep dive into why the ISL’s continuation is crucial for the ecosystem it has helped build.

The financial backbone of Indian Football

It's important to talk talk about the money. The ISL has turned Indian football from a niche sport into a financial powerhouse, injecting massive amounts of money into the federation, players, and the footballing ecosystem at large.

The FSDL invests over ₹60 crore annually into the league, and the clubs themselves have spent thousands of crores over the years to build their teams, infrastructure, and fan bases.

If the league were to stall, all of that investment would go down the drain.

These aren’t just financial commitments—they represent long-term visions for the clubs, players, and the entire football industry.

If ISL were to stop, it would not just be a blow to the teams and players, but to the thousands of people employed directly or indirectly by the league.

Clubs like Odisha FC, Kerala Blasters, and Mumbai City FC provide jobs to 100- 200 people each, whether as part of the administrative staff, coaches, groundskeepers, media teams, or marketing departments. The ISL ecosystem, in total, supports roughly 4,000-5,000 jobs.

These are not just high-profile, well-paid jobs; there are also grassroots roles, community outreach programs, and many other contributions that ISL makes to the regional economies.

Without the league, many of these roles will vanish overnight. The domino effect would devastate livelihoods across the country.

Football clubs are small businesses, too, and they sustain hundreds of families. The impact would stretch far beyond the teams – it would hit local economies and support systems too.

Gone are the days when footballers were struggling to make ends meet or relying on other professions to support their careers. Today, the ISL has brought financial security and stability to Indian footballers.

Most players now earn a minimum of ₹1 crore annually, with 20% of players making salaries above ₹1.5 crore or ₹2 crore. Indian footballers are no longer looking at their careers as a short-term passion – the ISL has turned football into a legitimate livelihood for many.

This is crucial because, for decades, Indian footballers were underpaid and often overlooked by big sponsors or media outlets. The ISL changed that, providing not just a career but a respectable future for many of these players, some of whom had to balance multiple jobs just to survive.

A stable livelihood gives them more time to focus on improving their game, and ultimately, it benefits Indian football as a whole.

The ISL has done something that no other football league in India could achieve before – it has inspired millions of young kids to take up football seriously.

Much like how the Indian Premier League (IPL) revolutionized cricket, the ISL has shown kids from small towns and villages that football can be a viable career. It has given them role models who are making a living out of the sport, something many never thought was possible before.

If the ISL were to collapse, the dream of becoming a professional footballer would once again seem far-fetched for many young athletes. The financial rewards, opportunities, and visibility the ISL provides to aspiring players would vanish, and so would their motivation to pursue football professionally.

Club investment

Imagine a situation where some of the most well-established clubs are forced to shut shop due to the ISL’s uncertain future.

The long-term investments they have made in infrastructure, youth development, and brand-building would all be jeopardized.

The hundreds of crores invested by the clubs, along with sponsorship deals and long-term plans for growth, would be rendered pointless. This isn’t just about the present—it is about the future of Indian football.

The clubs - who happen to the heartbeat of movement - are trying to build something long-lasting, something that can stand the test of time. They are putting their money and trust into the future of football in India, but with the threat of an ISL shutdown, everything they have worked for could unravel.

It is also essential to note that the AIFF relies heavily on the funds from FSDL. If the ISL’s future is uncertain, this stream of revenue would be cut off, leaving AIFF to scramble for funding.

And what would that mean? More instability, more inconsistency, and a further lack of growth at the grassroots level.

This funding helps the Federation run its operations and fund various programs—everything from national camps to local league development.

Need for a sports arbitration body?

Sports decisions should be made by sports experts, not by the court of law.

The Supreme Court, despite its noble intentions, is not the place to decide the future of a sport. In European nations, sports arbitration bodies hear matters of dispute pertaining to draft constitutions of governing bodies and seldom does the matter appear before a court of law.

In India, however, in the absence of such establishments, the courts hear matters pertaining to sporting disputes such as this.

Football needs a board of knowledgeable, experienced individuals who understand the intricacies of the game, its potential, and its future.

Judicial rulings about contracts and governance might be necessary, but they should not determine the fate of the sport itself.

The ISL is a sporting initiative, and only people with a genuine understanding of football’s nuances should make decisions about its future.

The Supreme Court’s interference, while often necessary in legal matters, could put Indian football's progress, in this case, in jeopardy.