AIFF confirms indefinite suspension of Indian Super League, urges patience amid uncertainty over rights agreement

The crisis that Indian football currently finds itself in has worsened with the All India Football Federation confirming that the 2025-26 season of the Indian Super League (ISL) has indeed been put on hold. The development comes at a time when the men’s football team has undergone a freefall on the FIFA rankings and has been struggling against lower-ranked teams, with the suspension of India’s top-flight division casting a shadow on the future of the ‘Beautiful Game’ in the country.

The confirmation from the AIFF comes after Football Sports Development Limited (FSDL), a subsidiary of the Reliance Group that was created to operate the ISL, had earlier informed the clubs that the league had been put on hold due to contractual issues that are yet to be resolved.

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AIFF urges patience even as Indian football sinks to new lows

The federation, however, urged its stakeholders to remain patient while discussions over its Master Rights Agreement (MRA) with the FSDL continue. The current MRA between the two bodies, which establishes the structure, operations and commercial framework of the ISL, is set to expire on 8 December, at which point the upcoming season will already be underway.

“The AIFF and its stakeholders will take all possible steps and do all things within their power to ensure continuity of the ISL in the best interests of Indian football. We request the understanding of all stakeholders in the interim,” the AIFF said in a statement on Saturday.

The original MRA was signed in 2010 and granted the FSDL exclusive commercial and operational rights for a period of 15 years for the league that was officially recognised by FIFA and the Asian Football Confederation as India’s top-tier competition in 2019, five years after the inaugural edition.

The FSDL had reportedly proposed a new model of governance under a holding company in which 60 per cent of the ownership would go to the clubs while it would retain 26 per cent, with the remaining 14 per cent going to the AIFF.

Talks with the Delhi-based national federation, however, have stalled with the AIFF having formed an eight-member task force to study the issue instead of finalising a new MRA by April.