The All India Football Federation has confirmed that the Indian Super League's 2026-27 season will go ahead with 13 clubs, ending weeks of uncertainty over the competition's participant list. The league is set to kick off after October 6, 2026, once the FIFA international window closes, and will be played in a double round-robin, home-and-away format.
What AIFF confirmed
In its statement, the AIFF said locking in the 13-team lineup allows the league to "move forward with essential commercial discussions and fixture planning" for the new season. It's a notable step down from the 14 clubs originally targeted for this cycle, but it gives broadcasters, sponsors and clubs the clarity they'd been waiting on through much of August. A separate communication on the full fixture list is expected to follow, and AIFF has not yet nailed down an exact kick-off date beyond saying it will fall after the international window.
Why there was uncertainty
The number hadn't been settled because two clubs dropped out over money. Jamshedpur FC, the Tata Steel-backed side that had been part of the ISL since its 2017 launch, pulled out of the league and disbanded its first team on July 31 after failing to pay the first installment of its participation fee. Churchill Brothers then stepped in and bought Jamshedpur's stake, effectively taking their place in the league rather than the competition simply losing a slot.
Diamond Harbour FC, fresh off winning the 2025-26 Indian Football League, was the second club to fall away. The AIFF had set participation fees for the season at roughly Rs 1.1 crore per club, payable in installments, and Diamond Harbour missed the deadline for its second Rs 55 lakh payment. The federation had already adjusted an earlier Rs 55 lakh from the club's IFL prize money toward the fee, but the remaining balance went unpaid by the cutoff, and the club was subsequently left out of next season's plans.
Between the Jamshedpur exit, Churchill Brothers' takeover of that slot, and Diamond Harbour's late withdrawal, the AIFF spent much of August working out exactly how many clubs would actually be ready to compete — which is why this confirmation matters as much as it does.
What changes this season
Beyond the smaller field, the headline structural change is the return to a double round-robin format, with every club playing every other club twice, home and away. That's a shift from the more compressed, largely single-leg scheduling the league has leaned on in recent seasons, and it should mean a fuller, more familiar-looking league table by the time the playoffs roll around.
The season is also being framed by the AIFF as part of a "club-led" phase for the league, with ownership groups more directly involved in shaping participation terms — the fee structure that tripped up Jamshedpur and Diamond Harbour is itself part of that shift. Startup date aside, expect more detail on the exact fixture calendar, venues and any further format tweaks in AIFF's promised follow-up communication.
What it means for fans
For supporters, the practical upshot is straightforward: the ISL is happening this season, it'll have a fuller round-robin calendar, and it starts once the October international break wraps up rather than in early September as originally planned. The smaller 13-club field also means one fewer set of fixtures each week than a 14-team season would have produced, something broadcasters and fantasy football players alike will need to factor in once the full schedule drops.
For the basics of how the league works, see our ISL explainer.
