India built a football league on the IPL model, with Del Piero as bait
India has played organised football since the Durand Cup of 1888, yet had no national league until 1996. In 2014 promoters borrowed the cricket playbook: city franchises, celebrity owners, a three-month season and ageing European stars such as Alessandro Del Piero and Luis García. Crowds and TV audiences beat expectations.
Earlier efforts struggled. The semi-professional National Football League began in 1996 and was relaunched in 2006 as the I-League, but poor marketing kept it unpopular. A ten-year broadcasting deal with Zee Sports collapsed in 2010, and that December the national federation signed a 15-year, ₹700 crore agreement with Reliance Industries and the International Management Group. On 21 October 2013 they, together with Star Sports, launched the Indian Super League.
The opening season kicked off on 12 October 2014 at Kolkata's Salt Lake Stadium, where Atlético de Kolkata beat Mumbai City 3–0; Fikru Teferra scored the first goal. Kolkata had named the league's first head coach, Antonio López Habas, and its first marquee signing, Luis García, a Champions League winner. Chennai received a franchise after Bangalore's owners dropped out. Kolkata dominated early, twice beating Kerala Blasters in the final, in 2014 and 2016.
Recognition took time. For three seasons neither the Asian confederation nor FIFA treated it as a proper league, and FIFA's secretary general called it a tournament. From 2017–18 it grew to ten clubs, adding Jamshedpur and Bengaluru, stretched its calendar and gained Asian approval. The historic Kolkata giants Mohun Bagan and East Bengal joined for 2020–21, and in 2022–23 the ISL became the sole top division, with the I-League demoted beneath it.
Promotion now links the tiers, bringing in Punjab, Mohammedan and Inter Kashi to make 14 clubs. ATK won three titles. In 2024–25 Mohun Bagan became the first club to retain the League Shield and the first to pass 50 points, finishing on 56.
Source: Indian Super League
