In a do-or-die battle, former National Football League champions East Bengal beat Viva Kerala 3-1 in the penultimate round of the inaugural ONGC I-League championship at the Corporation stadium in Kozhikode on Sunday.
The ISL champions would also be entitled to a play-off place in the AFC Champions League and the I-League champions would take a place in the AFC Cup.
Two-time National Football League winners Subhas Bhowmick (East Bengal), Subroto Bhattacharya (formerly with Mohun Bagan) and Armando Colaco (Dempo) have been named among the five all-time best coaches of the National Football League from 1996-2007.
Goals by Roberto Silva and Ranty Martins gave their defending champions a 2-1 victory in their second match of the I-League football competition.
Dempo are looking to maintain their good run when they take on their West Asian rivals in the first leg of the AFC Cup semi-final at the Sports City Stadium in Lebanon on Tuesday.
Real Kashmir FC co-owner Sandeep Chattoo, on Friday, said his side is now on a mission to make the 'paradise on earth' a paradise for the beautiful game.
With a staff in one hand and the other on his granddaughter's shoulder, the old man briskly takes the lead as the sun breaks over the horizon.
Bengaluru FC will begin their I-League title defence against Shillong Lajong at home at Kanteerava Stadium in the inaugural game of the new season on January 7.
A footballer had to be hospitalized after a doctor mistakenly gave him methylated spirit to drink instead of water during a Kolkata premier division football league match on Monday.
The Cricket Association of Bengal will stage the four-day final of the S K Acharya memorial tournament (Ranji Trophy pre-season tourney) with pink balls and under floodlights. The title round of the four-team tournament will be played at the Eden Gardens from October 1-4.
Aizawl FC have threatened to 'fast unto death' after finding themselves in the bizarre position of staring at relegation next season despite winning India's top division title on Sunday.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
The 30-year-old captain of India's football team, who switched allegiance from East Bengal to Bagan in June 2006, signed for another two years saying he is very happy to continue playing with the Kolkata giants .
Mohun Bagan rode on a Jose Barreto hat-trick to blank Kolkata rivals Mohammedan Sporting 3-0 in the 113th IFA Shield tournament quarter-final group league matches in Kolkata on Saturday. In the day's other matches, Mahindra United beat East Bengal 2-0 while Churchill Brothers and Dhaka Mohammedan Sporting drew goalless.
A Chidi Edeh strike against the run of play was enough for Goa's Dempo Sports Club to claim their maiden Super Cup title as they beat Kolkata's East Bengal by a solitary goal in Gurgaon on Wednesday.
The Mohun Bagan ace was also slapped a fine of Rs 50,000 for arguing with the referee and refusing to leave the field after being shown the red card during the match against archrivals East Bengal on September 26.
Dempo SC produced an aesthetic brand of football to win the first I-League title.
All the results from the I-League and ISL matches played on Saturday.
Mohun Bagan were held to a goalless draw by a determined Air India team in the 13th round of the I-League.
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.
Last year's winners of the India leg Mohun Bagan began their campaign in the Nike-Manchester United Premier Cup (under-15) football tournament with a resounding 9-0 victory over J &K Football Academy.
I-League champions Dempo scripted history becoming the first team from India to make it to the semi-finals of the AFC Cup when they defeated Home United 4-3 in Singapore on Tuesday.
Durand Cup champions Churchill Brothers started their campaign in the I-League on a bright note, scoring a 3-0 victory over Sporting Clube de Goa.
The Mumbai outfit will take on the Lebanon club at home on September 18 before playing the away leg a week later.
On the verge of scripting history, Bengaluru FC will seek to become the first Indian club to enter the final of AFC Cup when they lock horns with defending champions Johor Darul Takzim in the semi-final of the premier event in Bengaluru, on Wednesday.
Defending champions Minerva Punjab FC forfeited their I-League match against Real Kashmir FC in Srinagar after the All India Football Federation (AIFF) turned down their request to relocate the fixture in the aftermath of the Pulwama terror attacks.
India captain Virat Kohli has postponed the RP-SG Indian Sports Honours, which was to take place on Saturday, as a 'mark of respect' to the Central Reserve Police Force personnel martyred in the Pulwama terrorist attack.
After a lacklustre first half at Nehru stadium in Goa, Churchill got the all-important goal in the 62nd minute through Raju D.
Seventy thousand fans cheered wildly as world soccer boss Joseph Blatter went round the Salt Lake Stadium in Kolkata in an open jeep.
Mahindra United failed to capitalise on chances that came their way and went down 1-2 to Lebanon's Al Nejmeh club in the first leg of the AFC Cup quarter-final.
The ace midfielder passed away following a heart attack.
The talismanic Ghanaian's fourth strike in the tournament took the defending champions past HAL and to the top of the table.
After four rounds and 20 matches, and the teams so well matched, it's hard to pick a clear favourite in the National Football League.
Teams that were considered underdogs going into the tournament, held their own against more fancied teams and came away with favourable results.
The ace striker confirmed that he accepted the Kolkata giants' offer for the upcoming season.
Bhaichung Bhutia has been adjudged the Best Player of the 10th ONGC National Football League
Mahindra United outsmarted Air India 2-0 in their NFL tie at the Cooperage ground in Mumbai.
Mahindra United need to guard against complacency when they take on the spirited Goan team in the semi-finals of the Federation Cup football tournament.
Real Madrid football director Benito Floro said earlier this week that he wanted to sign the England midfielder.
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