2021–22 I-League
Season | 2021–22 |
---|---|
Dates | 26 December 2021 – April 2022 |
← 2020–21 2022–23 → |
The 2021–22 I-League (also known as Hero I-League for sponsorship reasons) is the 15th season of I-League, last as the top tier of Indian football league system, since its establishment in 2007. All the matches will be hosted in a bio-secure bubble in West Bengal due to COVID-19 pandemic in India.
Gokulam Kerala are the defending champions.[1]
Changes from last season
Number of clubs
The total number of clubs participating increased from 11 in the previous season to 13 in this season.
In 2020 the All India Football Federation (AIFF) issued an invitation to accept bids for new clubs from non I-League cities, like Delhi, Gangtok, Ranchi, Jaipur, Jodhpur, Mangalore, Bhopal, Lucknow, Kanpur, Ahmedabad and Calicut among many others, to join the league from 2020 onwards. The invitation mentioned that the entity which wins the bid will be granted the right to own and operate a new football club.[2] On 12 August 2020, the AIFF announced that Sreenidi Deccan FC, which is based in Visakhapatnam would join from this season.[3][4]
On 4 December 2021, the AIFF barred the former I-League champions, Chennai City FC, from participating in 2021-22 I-League on failing to comply with club licensing regulations, and eventually replaced by Kenkre FC.
Promoted clubs
Promoted from the 2021 I-League Qualifiers
Relegated clubs
Relegated from the 2020–21 I-League
- None[b]
Notes
- ^ After Chennai City FC was barred from participation in the league, Kenkre FC replaced them being the runner-up of 2021 I-League Qualifiers
- ^ Viewing the deprecating financial conditions of the many clubs during the COVID-19 pandemic, the AIFF decided to withdraw relegation for a season.
Format
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the tournament's format was shortened last season, and the same format is being followed. All teams will face each other once in the first leg of the league, then they will be divided into two different groups. According to points table from first leg, top seven teams will face each other once again in the Championship stage, where the team with most points (cumulative points collected from all seventeen matches) will be declared the winner of the league and qualify for the 2023 AFC Cup. The other five teams will play against each other in a Relegation stage where the team with the lowest points (cumulative points collected from all sixteen matches) will be relegated to 2022-23 2nd division league.[5]
Teams
Stadiums and locations
Due to COVID-19 pandemic in India, all the matches will be played in a single venue. AIFF declared West Bengal as the venue on 26 June.[6] Matches will be played in Mohun Bagan Ground in Kolkata, Kalyani Stadium in Kalyani and Naihati Stadium in Naihati.[7]
Stadium | Capacity | Location |
---|---|---|
Kalyani Municipal Stadium | 20,000 | Kalyani, Nadia |
Mohun Bagan Ground | 20,000 | Maidan, Kolkata |
Naihati Bankimanjali Stadium | 25,000 | Naihati, North 24 Parganas |
Personnel and sponsorship
Team | Head coach | Captain | Kit manufacturer | Shirt sponsor |
---|---|---|---|---|
Aizawl | Yan Law | Vamos[8] | NECS Limited[9] | |
Churchill Brothers | Petre Gigiu | Nivia Sports[10] | Churchill | |
Gokulam Kerala | Vincenzo Alberto Annese | Sharif Mukhammad | SEGA[11] | Sree Gokulam Group[12] |
Indian Arrows | Shanmugam Venkatesh | Lalchhanhima Sailo | SIX5SIX[13] | Hero MotoCorp |
Kenkre | Akhil Kothari | Azhar Delhiwala | Hummel | |
Mohammedan | Andrey Chernyshov[14] | Nikola Stojanović | Hummel | BunkerHill Sports[15] |
NEROCA | Khogen Singh[16] | Nivia Sports[17] | Vintel Infracom Pvt. Ltd. | |
Punjab | Ashley Westwood | Gurtej Singh | SIX5SIX[18] | RoundGlass Sports[19] |
Rajasthan United | Francesc Bonet | Ambition Sportswear | Purnima University | |
Real Kashmir | David Robertson | Mason Robertson | SIX5SIX[20] | Hotel CH2[20] |
Sreenidi Deccan | Fernando Santiago Varela[21] | Thounaogam Dinesh Singh | Nivia | Sreenidhi Group |
Sudeva Delhi | Mehrajuddin Wadoo (caretaker) | Sairuat Kima | Hummel | Liquid Life[22] |
TRAU | Nandakumar Singh | Helder Lobato Ribeiro | Ambition Sportswear | HVS |
Head coaching changes
Team | Outgoing coach | Manner of departure | Date of vacancy | Ref. | Week | Table | Incoming coach | Date of appointment | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Sreenidi Deccan | Expansion team | Pre-season | Fernando Santiago Varela | 20 April 2021 | |||||
Mohammedan | Sankarlal Chakraborty | End of caretaker spell | 10 May 2021 | Andrey Chernyshov | 12 May 2021 | [23] | |||
Churchill Brothers | Fernando Santiago Varela | End of contract | 20 April 2021 | Petre Gigiu | 18 June 2021 | ||||
NEROCA | Gift Raikhan | End of contract | 30 June 2021 | Khogen Singh | 3 July 2021 | [16] | |||
Punjab | Curtis Fleming | Signed by Bristol City | 1 June 2021 | Ashley Westwood | 15 July 2021 | [24] | |||
Sudeva Delhi | Chencho Dorji | Professional improvement | 13 November 2021 | Mehrajuddin Wadoo (caretaker) | 13 November 2021 | ||||
Rajasthan United | Vikrant Sharma | Technical director | 2 December 2021 | Francesc Bonet | 2 December 2021 |
Transfers
Foreign players
AIFF allowed maximum of four foreign players including one from AFC-affiliated country per team but only four can be part of Matchday squad.[25] Indian Arrows cannot sign any foreign player as they are part of AIFF's developmental program.
Team | Player 1 | Player 2 | Player 3 | Player 4 | Player 5 | AFC player | Former players |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Aizawl | Bazie Armand | Aser Pierrick Dipanda | Willis Plaza | Olimjon Karimov | |||
Churchill Brothers | Guilherme Escuro | Sekou Sylla | Kenneth Ikechukwu | Shadi Skaf | |||
Gokulam Kerala | Aminou Bouba | Rahim Osumanu | Sharif Mukhammad | ||||
Kenkre | Zacharie Mbenda | ||||||
Mohammedan | Ismar Tandir | Andjelo Rudović | Nikola Stojanović | Marcus Joseph | Shaher Shaheen | ||
NEROCA | Ben Quansah | Juan Mera | Sergio Mendigutxia | Mohamad Kdouh | |||
Punjab | Josef Yarney | Kurtis Guthrie | Joseba Beitia | Travis Major | |||
Rajasthan United | Diego Bielkiewicz | Fabiano Alves | Marcelinho | Akeem Abioye | Komron Tursunov | ||
Real Kashmir | Tiago Adan | Mason Robertson | Fran Gonzalez | Park Jong-oh | |||
Sreenidi Deccan | Juan David Castañeda | Mohamed Awal | Hamza Kheir | ||||
Sudeva Delhi | |||||||
TRAU | Helder Lobato Ribeiro | Douglas Santana Veloso | Fernandinho | Joseph Olaleye | Gerard Williams | Akobir Turaev |
Phase 1
Standings
Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Indian Arrows[a] | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | Championship Stage |
2 | TRAU | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | |
3 | Aizawl | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
4 | Kenkre | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
5 | Churchill Brothers | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
6 | Gokulam Kerala | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
7 | Mohammedan | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
8 | NEROCA | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Relegation Stage |
9 | Rajasthan United | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
10 | Punjab | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
11 | Real Kashmir | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
12 | Sreenidi Deccan[b] | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
13 | Sudeva Delhi | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) head-to-head points; 3) head-to-head goal difference; 4) goal difference; 5) number of goals scored; 6) drawing of lots
Notes:
- ^ Indian Arrows were exempted from relegation, as they are an AIFF developmental team.
- ^ Sreenidi Deccan will be exempted from relegation for this season, as they had achieved direct league entry.[26]
Fixtures and results
All matches were played at neutral venues. The "home" and "away" are designated for administrative purposes.
Positions by round
The table lists the positions of teams after each round mentioned in official fixtures.
Promotion to Championship stage | |
Demotion to Relegation stage |
Results by games
Phase 2
Championship stage (Group A)
Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | TBD | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Champion, Qualification for 2023 AFC Cup[27] |
2 | TBD | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
3 | TBD | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
4 | TBD | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
5 | TBD | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
6 | TBD | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
7 | TBD | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) head-to-head points; 3) head-to-head goal difference; 4) goal difference; 5) number of goals scored; 6) drawing of lots
Relegation stage (Group B)
Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | TBD | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
2 | TBD | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
3 | TBD | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
4 | TBD | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
5 | TBD | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
6 | TBD | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Relegation to 2022-23 I-League 2nd Division |
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) head-to-head points; 3) head-to-head goal difference; 4) goal difference; 5) number of goals scored; 6) drawing of lots
Season statistics
Top scorers
|
Top assists
|
Hat-tricks
Player | For | Against | Result | Date |
---|
Clean sheets
- As of 28 November 2021.
Rank | Player | Club | Clean
sheets |
---|
Awards
- Match 1 - 78 = First phase
- Match 79 - 114 = Second phase
Hero of the match
Match No. | Hero of the match | Match No. | Hero of the match | Match No. | Hero of the match | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Player | Club | Player | Club | Player | Club | |||
Match 1 | Match 2 | Match 3 | ||||||
Match 4 | Match 5 | Match 6 | ||||||
Match 7 | Match 8 | Match 9 | ||||||
Match 10 | Match 11 | Match 12 | ||||||
Match 13 | Match 14 | Match 15 | ||||||
Match 16 | Match 17 | Match 18 | ||||||
Match 19 | Match 20 | Match 21 | ||||||
Match 22 | Match 23 | Match 24 | ||||||
Match 25 | Match 26 | Match 27 | ||||||
Match 28 | Match 29 | Match 30 | ||||||
Match 31 | Match 32 | Match 33 | ||||||
Match 34 | Match 35 | Match 36 | ||||||
Match 37 | Match 38 | Match 39 | ||||||
Match 40 | Match 41 | Match 42 | ||||||
Match 43 | Match 44 | Match 45 | ||||||
Match 46 | Match 47 | Match 48 | ||||||
Match 49 | Match 50 | Match 51 | ||||||
Match 52 | Match 53 | Match 54 | ||||||
Match 55 | Match 56 | Match 57 | ||||||
Match 58 | Match 59 | Match 60 | ||||||
Match 61 | Match 62 | Match 63 | ||||||
Match 64 | Match 65 | Match 66 | ||||||
Match 67 | Match 68 | Match 69 | ||||||
Match 70 | Match 71 | Match 72 | ||||||
Match 73 | Match 74 | Match 75 | ||||||
Match 76 | Match 77 | Match 78 | ||||||
Match 79 | Match 80 | Match 81 | ||||||
Match 82 | Match 83 | Match 84 | ||||||
Match 85 | Match 86 | Match 87 | ||||||
Match 88 | Match 89 | Match 90 | ||||||
Match 91 | Match 92 | Match 93 | ||||||
Match 94 | Match 95 | Match 96 | ||||||
Match 97 | Match 98 | Match 99 | ||||||
Match 100 | Match 101 | Match 102 | ||||||
Match 103 | Match 104 | Match 105 | ||||||
Match 106 | Match 107 | Match 108 | ||||||
Match 109 | Match 110 | Match 111 | ||||||
Match 112 | Match 113 | Match 114 | ||||||
Source: The AIFF |
See also
- 2021–22 Indian Super League season
- Indian Super League
- I-League 2nd Division
- Super Cup
- 2021 Durand Cup
- 2021 IFA Shield
References
- ^ "Gokulam Kerala script incredible comeback to win maiden I-League". Times of India. 27 March 2021. Archived from the original on 21 May 2021. Retrieved 7 May 2021.
- ^ "AIFF invites bids for new clubs to join Hero I-League 2020 onwards". AIFF. 5 June 2020. Retrieved 19 June 2020.
- ^ "Sudeva and Sreenidhi granted playing rights in Hero I-League from 2020-21 and 2021-22 respectively". AIFF. Retrieved 12 August 2020.
- ^ "Sreenidhi Football Club". AIFF. Retrieved 13 August 2020.
- ^ "Hero I-League 2020-21 to start on January 9 with a new shorter format". the-aiff.com. 7 November 2020. Retrieved 7 November 2020.
- ^ "I-League 2021-22 to be held in Kolkata: Everything you need to know | Goal.com". www.goal.com. Retrieved 7 December 2021.
- ^ "I-League to kick off on Boxing Day in Kolkata; 13 teams to compete this season". Free Press Journal. Retrieved 7 December 2021.
- ^ "Aizawl FC announce Vamos as Kit Sponsor". 20 November 2020. Archived from the original on 11 May 2021. Retrieved 23 May 2021.
- ^ Das Sharma, Amitabha (19 January 2018). "Aizawl looks to build future with own hands". The Hindu. Archived from the original on 11 May 2021. Retrieved 25 September 2020.
- ^ "Nivia Sports Official Website". Nivia Sports. Archived from the original on 18 November 2020. Retrieved 13 December 2020.
- ^ "Gokulam Kerala sign new kit sponsorship deal with SEGA Shoes". Archived from the original on 12 July 2021. Retrieved 6 December 2020.
- ^ "The Club - Gokulam Kerala FC". gokulamkeralafc.com. Archived from the original on 31 October 2020. Retrieved 6 November 2020.
- ^ "NEW YEAR, NEW KIT FOR INDIAN FOOTBALL". 19 December 2018. Archived from the original on 13 November 2020. Retrieved 7 November 2020.
- ^ "Mohammedan Sporting appointed Andrey Chernyshov as head coach". IFTWC.com. Archived from the original on 12 May 2021. Retrieved 12 May 2021.
- ^ "Mohammedan Sporting Club - Official Website". Mohammedan. Archived from the original on 27 November 2020. Retrieved 13 December 2020.
- ^ a b "I-League – Former I-League winning coach Khogen Singh signs for NEROCA FC". IFTWC. 4 July 2021. Archived from the original on 3 July 2021. Retrieved 4 July 2021.
- ^ NEROCA F.C. [@NerocaFC] (2 September 2021). "We are glad to announce Nivia Sports as the official kit partner of Neroca FC" (Tweet). Retrieved 15 September 2021 – via Twitter.
- ^ RoundGlass Punjab FC [@SIX5SIXSport] (17 September 2021). "We are excited to welcome @RGPunjabFC to the @SIX5SIXSport family for the next 3 years!" (Tweet). Retrieved 17 September 2021 – via Twitter.
- ^ "Real Kashmir FC: Official Website". Arunava Chaudhuri. Archived from the original on 23 May 2021. Retrieved 13 December 2020.
- ^ a b "Real Kashmir FC: Official Website". Real Kashmir FC. Archived from the original on 12 December 2020. Retrieved 13 December 2020.
- ^ "Sreenidhi FC appoint Fernando Varela as head coach for I-League 2021-22 season". Sportskeeda. 20 April 2021. Archived from the original on 23 April 2021. Retrieved 23 April 2021.
- ^ "Our Sponsors & Partners". Sudeva Delhi FC. Archived from the original on 24 November 2020. Retrieved 13 December 2020.
- ^ "Mohammedan Sporting appointed Russian Andrey Chernyshov as their head coach |". IFTWC.com. Archived from the original on 21 May 2021. Retrieved 4 July 2021.
- ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 16 July 2021. Retrieved 16 July 2021.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ^ "AIFF Implements '3+1' rule for I-League 2020-21". Indo-Asian News Service. Times Now. Archived from the original on 2 July 2020. Retrieved 14 May 2020.
- ^ "Sudeva FC wins bid for direct entry into the I-League - All you need to know | Goal.com". www.goal.com. Archived from the original on 19 May 2021. Retrieved 1 March 2021.
- ^ "AFC EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE APPROVE INDIAN FOOTBALL ROADMAP". www.the-aiff.com. Archived from the original on 17 September 2021. Retrieved 26 October 2019.