The Indian Super League (ISL), India’s flagship football competition, is facing a credibility crisis. In a dramatic twist, seven ISL clubs have been denied Premier 1 licenses by AIFF’s Club Licensing Committee for failing to meet mandatory criteria. While a few others barely scraped through with sanctions, the league’s top structure is now under scrutiny for what appears to be a systemic breakdown in compliance and governance.

The Shocking Numbers

Out of 15 clubs that applied:

• Only Punjab FC received the Premier 1 license without conditions.
• Seven clubs, including Mumbai City FC, Mohun Bagan SG, and East Bengal, were cleared with minor sanctions.
• But a staggering seven others were outright rejected—including Kerala Blasters, Odisha FC, Hyderabad FC, NorthEast United, Mohammedan SC, Churchill Brothers, and Inter Kashi.

For a league that claims to be India’s premier football competition, such widespread failure is not just alarming—it’s embarrassing.

Stadiums, Safety, and Shortcuts

The most cited issues were:

• Lack of proper stadium safety protocols (notably in Kerala Blasters’ case, where there were fire safety violations and infrastructure negligence).
• Missing official agreements for training facilities (as with Odisha FC).
• Incomplete administrative, financial, and legal documentation.

These aren’t minor oversights. These are basic minimum standards for any club participating in a top-tier competition.

What Went Wrong?

This isn’t about one club cutting corners—it’s a pattern. A pattern that suggests:

• Clubs are operating on shaky foundations, more focused on matchdays than long-term professionalism.
• AIFF’s licensing process may have been relaxed for too long, leading to complacency.
• FSDL, Reliance’s sports subsidiary and ISL’s commercial operator, has not enforced accountability, choosing marketing over merit.

If the ISL wants to be respected in Asia or globally, it needs to get its house in order. These rejections show how far away that goal still is.

A Wake-Up Call or a Whitewash?

There are two ways this plays out:

1. AIFF holds firm, forcing clubs to fix issues or risk exclusion—marking a new era of professionalism.
2. Or, as in past years, AIFF and FSDL grant last-minute exemptions, bypassing the entire licensing system to protect the ISL’s image.

If the second happens, it will once again prove that Indian football is a product, not a project—run by sponsors, not by sport.

A Quiet Rebellion Is Growing

The most interesting fallout? Fans aren’t quiet anymore.
Online communities are demanding answers. Lower league clubs are watching. And many are realizing that unless the system changes, Indian football’s dream of a FIFA World Cup appearance remains just that—a dream.

A Positive Note Amid the Mess

Despite the chaos, there is hope. The fact that the AIFF licensing committee even denied licenses is a first step toward real accountability. It sends a clear message: if you want to be a top-tier club in India, you can’t just wear the jersey—you have to earn it off the pitch too.

Whether AIFF stays firm or folds under pressure will decide not just the next ISL season—but the future of Indian football governance.