Reports : ISL to get AFC Champions League slot while I-League go down to AFC Cup

Ahead of the much-awaited meeting between AIFF president Praful Patel and the protesting I-League clubs, Goal has reported that the meeting would likely conclude with I-League clubs getting second-tier status.

"ISL is likely to get the AFC Champions League slot from the upcoming season. We will seat with all the stakeholders of Indian football soon and try to find a way out amicably. This a stop-gap solution for the next two seasons,” said a senior AIFF official, reported Goal. 

The AIFF has been having a rift with I-League clubs since March of this year with six of ten I-League clubs even boycotting the Super Cup after failing to meet Patel prior to that tournament. Now, with reports of ISL emerging as top tier, the I-League clubs have also threatened to move to court.

However, with the decision seemingly inevitable now, Kolkata giants East Bengal and Mohun Bagan could see themselves not playing in country’s top tier for the first time since the National Football League (NFL) was established back in 1996.

Both the clubs have won the NFL thrice each since the competition was renamed to I-League in 2007 and fans would now wait to see of the duo decide to join the ISL.