SHILLONG: The 2nd Division League for the 2013-14 season will begin on February 7 with the Preliminary Round.
A total of 11 teams will take part in the first round, while United Sikkim FC receive direct entry into the final round. United Sikkim were relegated at the end of last season from the top tier.
The other 11 teams have been divided into two groups of six and five teams and will play in two venues – Gangtok and Dhanbad (Jharkhand) – it was announced on the official I-League website on Thursday.
Just one team will represent Meghalaya this year. Royal Wahingdoh FC have been placed in Group A and will play their matches in Dhanbad.
Langsning FC decided, last year, not to take part.
Two other North Eastern teams are will feature in the tournament – Green Valley (Assam) and Aizawl FC.
Teams in each group will play each other once. The two top sides from each section will join United Sikkim in the final round, which will be held in April, where they will battle each other twice.
The final round will be held in Silchar and Aizawl in two phases.
The 2nd Division will only feature 12 teams this season as only “serious contenders” have been considered after applying All India Football Federation’s new club licensing criteria for the 2nd Division, the website said.
Group A: Royal Wahingdoh, Garhwal FC, PIFA Sports, Kalighat MS, MP United, Green Valley.
Group B: Hindustan FC, Kenkre FC, Eagles FC, Bhawanipore FC, Aizawl FC.