2020–21 I-League

The 2020–21 I-League is the 14th season of the I-League, one of the top Indian professional football leagues, since its establishment in 2007. (Officially known as Hero I-League, due to sponsorship reasons).

I-League
Season2020–21
2021–22 →
All statistics correct as of 18 April 2020.

Mohun Bagan were declared the champions of the 2019–20 season after the cancellation of matches, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, since the second placed team could not catch up even if all 20 games were completed.[1] However, ATK, a club which plays in the Indian Super League (ISL), merged with Mohun Bagan and as a result they will be playing in the 2020–21 ISL season.[2] Hence, for 2020–21 I-League season there is no defending champion.

Changes from last season

Changes in rules and regulations
  • Each club will have the option of signing a minimum of three and a maximum of four foreign players, but unlike the previous season, there should be at least one overseas player who hails from an AFC—affiliated country.[3]

Number of clubs

All India Football Federation (AIFF) issued an invitation to accept bids for new clubs form non I-League cities, like Delhi, Ranchi, Jaipur, Jodhpur, Bhopal, Lucknow, Ahmedabad among many others, to join the League from 2020 onwards. The invitation mentioned that, the entity that will win the bid will be granted the right to own and operate a new football club.[4]

Promoted from the 2019–20 2nd Division League

Relegated clubs

Relegated from the 2019–20 I-League

Teams
Locations of the I-League clubs

Stadiums and locations
Team City/State Stadium[5] Capacity
Aizawl Aizawl, Mizoram Rajiv Gandhi Stadium 20,000
Chennai City Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium 30,000
Churchill Brothers Margao, Goa Fatorda Stadium 20,000
Gokulam Kerala Calicut, Kerala Kozhikode EMS Stadium 50,000
Indian Arrows Vasco da Gama, Goa Tilak Maidan Stadium 5,000
Mumbai, Maharashtra Cooperage Ground 5,000
NEROCA Imphal, Manipur Khuman Lampak Main Stadium 35,000
Real Kashmir Srinagar, Jammu and Kashmir TRC Turf Ground 15,000
TRAU Imphal, Manipur Khuman Lampak Main Stadium 35,000

      Personnel and sponsorship
      Team Head coach Captain Kit Manufacturer Sponsor
      Aizawl Stanley Rozario Vamos NECS Limited
      Chennai City Akbar Nawas Uhlsport[6]
      Churchill Brothers Nivia
      Gokulam Kerala Kaizen Sree Gokulam
      Group
      Indian Arrows Six5Six Hero MotoCorp
      NEROCA Gift Raikhan Vicky Transform Living 3D
      Punjab Khalid jamil Spartan [7] Apollo Tyres
      Real Kashmir David Robertson Adidas J&K Bank
      TRAU Nivia

      Transfers
      Further information: List of 2020–21 I-League season roster changes

      Foreign players

      Minimum of three and maximum of four foreign players including one player from AFC—affiliated country per team.[8] Indian Arrows cannot sign any foreign players as they are the AIFF developmental team.

      Team Player 1 Player 2 Player 3 AFC Player
      Aizawl
      Chennai City
      Churchill Brothers
      Gokulam Kerala
      NEROCA
      Punjab
      Real Kashmir
      TRAU

      In bold: Players who are capped for there National Teams.

      References
      1. "League Committee sends its recommendations to the AIFF Executive Committee | Hero I-League". Retrieved 18 April 2020.
      2. "Bengaluru FC to play in AFC Cup playoffs as AIFF confirms all three continental spots for ISL teams". Scroll.in. 4 June 2020.
      3. Banerjee, Debkalpa (8 May 2020). "ISL, I-League brace for upheaval as AIFF considers altering foreign player rules". The Indian Express. Retrieved 19 June 2020.
      4. "AIFF invites bids for new clubs to join Hero I-League 2020 onwards". AIFF. 5 June 2020. Retrieved 19 June 2020.
      5. "2019-20 Hero I League Fixtures (Stadiums)". Hero I League. Retrieved 1 December 2019.
      6. "Chennai City announce strategic partnership with Uhlsports". AIFF. 19 August 2019. Retrieved 8 December 2019.
      7. "Spartan sports will be the official kit sponsor of Minerva Punjab FC for the upcoming season". Minerva Punjab FC. Twitter. 10 August 2019. Retrieved 15 July 2019.
      8. "AIFF Implements '3+1' rule for I-League 2020-21". Indo-Asian News Service. Times Now. Retrieved 14 May 2020.
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