In a stunning development in Indian football, two-time champions Churchill Brothers were thrown out of the I-League along with three other teams for failing to fulfil the AIFF's club licensing criteria.
Royal Wahingdoh FC notched up another three points after beating Sporting Clube de Goa 2-0.
Expressing serious concern at the unsavoury incident that happened after the Indian Super League final in Goa on Sunday, All India Football Federation president Praful Patel said on Monday he was awaiting the match commissioner's report before cracking the whip on the wrongdoers.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
Star winger Romeo Fernandes became the first-ever Indian footballer to play for a Brazilian club, enjoying a fairly successful debut in his club Atletico Paranaense's thrashing of Nacional over the weekend.
The glittering trophy, which will be awarded to the winner of the Indian Super League, was unveiled by chairperson of IMG-Reliance, Nita Ambani, in the presence of icon players Alessandro Del Piero and Fredrik Ljungberg among others.
Salgaocar held on to their first half strike by Gilbert Olivera to beat Shillong Lajong 1-0 and came out of the relegation in the Hero I-League in Vasco on Saturday.
Kerala Blasters secured their first point in the Hero Indian Super League after playing out a goalless draw at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, in Kochi, on Sunday.
Industry sources peg Kohli's investment in the FC Goa franchise at under Rs 1 crore a year.
It was Odisha, which started better, enforcing a corner in the third minute but Kerala scored the opener much against the run of play.
Kerala Blasters put up a dominating performance to beat table toppers FC Pune City 2-0 and notch up their first win in seven matches in the Indian Super League football tournament, in Kochi, on Wednesday.
Mohun Bagan and India striker Jeje Lalpekhlua was declared winner of the 'Indian Player of the Year' award by the Football Players Association of India (FPAI) at its annual awards function held at the Cooperage Ground in Mumbai. The 25-year-old from Mizoram, who made his international debut in 2012 and came through the junior ranks, received the highest number of votes from fellow professional footballers, beating the challenge from the short list of India captain Sunil Chhetri, Bikash Jairu, David Lalrinmuana and Dhanachandra Singh, to win the coveted award. Jeje, incidentally, was the winner of the FPAI's Junior Indian Footballer of the Year award in 2011, AIFF Emerging Player of the Year award in 2013 and the 2015 Indian Super League Emerging Player of the League award while representing franchise outfit Chennayin FC, the eventual champions, on loan from Bagan.
AIFF's Club Licensing Committee decided that based on the reports all the fourteen License Applicants failed to clear the Licensing Test.
FC Barcelona's Asia Pacific director general Jordi Camps believes it is a matter of time before an Indian plays in Spanish top-flight.
Summary of sports events and persons who made news on Thursday
Amid the buzz surrounding what has been termed a game-changer for Indian football, Brazilian legend Zico says the 158-ranked nation's hopes of scaling greater heights in the world sport depends solely on the local players' "mentality" and their "ability" to develop.
Defending champions St Stephen's Football Academy moved into the semi-finals of the Nike-Manchester United Premier Cup (MUPC) under-15 India finals holding Viva Kerala goalless at the Nehru Stadium in Margao, Goa, on Tuesday. Earlier in the day, St Stephen's scored a 4-0 win over Sporting Clube de Goa. Joining St Stephen's in the semis are Kalyani Municipality Academy, Raghav FC and Salgaocar SC.
Local lad Robin Singh struck in the injury time to help Delhi Dynamos hold Mumbai Indians to a 1-1 draw in an eighth round match of the Indian Super League football tournament, in New Delhi, on Friday.
Dempo FC kept their unbeaten run intact, scoring once in each half to beat Salgaocar FC 2-0 and enter the final of the 36th Hero Federation Cup football tournament in Margao, Goa, on Friday. Dominating the match in both sessions, they scored through Francis Fernandes(11th minute) and Tolgay Ozbey(59th), and could have won by bigger margin had rival 'keeper Subrata Paul not effected three brilliant saves.
Mahindra United registered two impressive victories on the second day of the Nike-Manchester United Premier Cup (under-15) South and West Zone football qualifiers in Margao, Goa, on Thursday. First they beat Sporting Clube de Goa 1-0, and followed it up with a 2-0 win over Air India 2-0.
Subhash Bhowmick, who guided Churchill Brothers to their second I-League title last season as Technical Director, is back in the team fold after Sukhwinder Singh announced his resignation.
The All India Football Federation on Saturday suspended tournaments at all levels, including the flagship I-League, till March 31 owing to the coronavirus pandemic.
A summary of sports events and sports persons, who made news on Friday.
Juventus and Inter, who have 42 points each from 17 games, both play on Monday while Lazio, with 39 from 17, have an outstanding fixture at home to Verona to come in early February.
Many Indian footballers have improved by leaps and bounds thanks to the exposure of playing in the Indian Super League in the last three seasons.
Mohun Bagan, East Bengal blast AIFF after Goan clubs quit I-League
The Ministry of Home Affairs on Monday said the Missionaries of Charity's application for renewal of the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act (FCRA) registration was refused on December 25 for not meeting eligibility conditions as some adverse inputs were received.
Star striker Odafa Okolie failed to make an impact as Mohun Bagan were held goalless by ONGC in a dull Round 5 match of the I-League in Delhi on Friday.
A summary of sports events and sports persons, who made news on Tuesday
Goa giants Dempo maintained their unbeaten record this season, defeating hosts Pune FC 3-1 for their sixth consecutive victory in I-League on Saturday.
With big names on the roster and promising Indians getting a chance to display their flair, the Hero Indian Super League, halfway into its first season, finds its heroes - and its duds. Take a look.
Manchester City CEO Ferran Soriano said the group had been looking for years at soccer in India and the Indian Super League (ISL), which is currently in its sixth season.
Fransa, with three wins out of four matches, has kept alive its chances of elevation to the top league.
Douhou Pierre scored in each half as Salgaocar registered a resounding 4-1 came-from-behind win over Mohun Bagan in the 36th Hero Federation Cup.
Indian cricketer Rohit Sharma was on Wednesday named as the co-owner of the Pro Wrestling League team UP Warriors.
Air India scored a stunning 2-0 victory over Dempo Sports Club to hand the favourites and former champions their third successive defeat in a tenth round I-League clash at the Nehru Stadium, Fatorda, in Goa.
The 2021 men's and women's U-17 European Championships have been cancelled due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, UEFA said on Friday.
With the I-League 2011-12 commencing from October 22, Dempo seems to be a bit worried as they have still not been able to register their foreigner Densill Theobald from Trinidad & Tobago and have now sought Fifa's help in this regard.
A dominant NorthEast United FC scored two late goals to beat Delhi Dynamos 2-0 in their Indian Super League football match.
Summary of I-League football matches played across India on Friday.
