NEW DELHI: Wide-ranging proposals to change the I-League were made when the All India Football Federation (AIFF) Emergency Committee met here on Monday.
The meeting was chaired by AIFF president Praful Patel and was attended by senior members of the federation, including Shillong Lajong owner and AIFF vice-president Larsing Ming Sawyan.
The Committee unanimously decided to allow two clubs direct entry into next season’s I-League.
Mumbai Tigers (to be based in Mumbai) and Jindal Vijayanagar Steel (to be based in Bangalore) will take part in the 2013-14 season and will also have the benefit of not facing the threat of relegation for that year.
A further bid by a consortium from Kerala requires further clarifications from the club before the AIFF will take a decision on their entry into the League.
The biggest change, however, is in the format of the I-League, with the adoption of the Conference Model.
Instead of all the I-League teams playing each other twice, as is the case now, the League will be divided into a Western Conference and an Eastern Conference.
The top four teams from each Conference will advance to a final round.
The season will also kick off earlier than would otherwise happen – in August.
Details of which teams will play in which Conference were not given.
A football website revealed on Monday morning that Pailan Arrows, the AIFF development team, will not be a part of the upcoming season, although no word was received from the AIFF on the matter.
Each I-League club will be allowed to register a maximum of 30 players, out of which a minimum of five will be required to be U-23 players. A minimum of two U-23 players need to be in the final 18 and at least one in the playing 11.
For the 2013-14 edition of the I-League, the committee decided to increase the number of foreign recruits to four. Every club will be allowed to register four foreign recruits and play all of them.
Additionally, English club Queens Park Rangers have given a tentative proposal to participate in the I-League from 2014-15 onwards after fulfilling all the criteria and standards as required.
Another change will see only one club relegated to the 2nd Division for 2014-15, with only one promoted to the top tier.
It was also decided that there will be a cap of five teams from any particular city in the I-League and 2nd Division combined.
If there are more, the teams will have to qualify based on their performance in the local leagues.
If additional teams from Goa and Kolkata qualify in subsequent editions, those particular teams have to relocate and play in a different venue subject to approval of AIFF/I-League.
From the 2015-16 season onwards, not more than two teams from any particular venue/city will be allowed to play in the I-League except for Kolkata and Goa, who can have an additional club given what the AIFF sees as their historical contribution to the game.
The Shillong Times tried to contact Sawyan on Tuesday evening but could not reach him for comment.
Churchill Brothers’ coach Subhash Bhowmick, however, criticised the AIFF’s proposal to make changes in the I-League format at a press conference in Kolkata on Tuesday.
“The I-League’s beauty will be lost if they do away with the home-away system. Perhaps the AIFF are not able to generate the money so they were mulling on changing the format,” he said.
“I-League is the best thing to have happened for Indian football. It’s competitive to the core and has many challenges like travelling.
“Winning the marathon league is very satisfying,” Bhowmick said, rating his club’s 2012-13 triumph ahead of the two National Football League victories with East Bengal.
The AIFF Emergency Committee also proposed other changes to the 2nd Division, U-20 I-League (which will now be an U-19 tournament) and Federation Cup.
The participating fee for existing clubs in the I-League has been increased from Rs 50,000 to Rs 500,000.
It was also decided to make amendments to the AIFF Constitution as per the directives of the Ministry of Sports and Youth Affairs with regards to age and tenure, something that got the Indian Olympic Association and several sports bodies in trouble with the International Olympic Committee. (Agencies)