The All India Football Federation (AIFF) and its business partner, Football Sports Development Limited (FSDL), have gotten the green light from the Supreme Court to start the Indian Super League (ISL) again. ESPN reported this news, which clears a big obstacle for the country’s top football league. It sets the ground for the next season to start in December.
The Supreme Court pushed for a quick start to India’s 2025-26 football season, which led to the proposal. It had two main points: first, an open tender would be held to locate a new business partner to run the ISL, and second, the Super Cup would start the season. The Supreme Court has now put retired Justice Nageswara Rao in charge of this bidding procedure.
The court’s decision comes after the Supreme Court told the AIFF and FSDL to meet and make a clear plan for the league’s future on August 22. On August 25, the two sides met in Bengaluru and came to an important agreement.
The AIFF and FSDL have agreed to hold a “open and transparent” process to choose a business partner for the ISL, which is very important. A separate professional company will be in charge of this process, which should be done by October 15. The 2025–26 ISL season will start in December when the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) approves the tender.
FSDL has given up its “right of first negotiation” and “right to match the winning bid,” which is one of the most important parts of this deal. If FSDL doesn’t bid or is outbid in the tender process, this innovative action makes it possible for a new participant to join the Indian football ecosystem. FSDL, with support from Reliance, has been in charge of the ISL for ten years, turning it from a brief, exhibition-style tournament into India’s top football league.
The ISL, which usually runs from September to April, was on pause because the AIFF and FSDL couldn’t agree on a deal. The main issue in the disagreement was the 15-year Master Rights Agreement (MRA) between the two groups, which will finish at the end of this year. The AIFF started talks for a renewal in November 2024, and there were official meetings in February and March. The Supreme Court had already told the AIFF that it couldn’t sign any new contracts until it ruled on the AIFF’s draft constitution, though.
This new move effectively ends the court’s previous ban on tendering contracts. Now it is up to the AIFF to make sure that the tender process goes smoothly and on time. In the meantime, Justice Rao’s final decision on the main lawsuit on the revised AIFF constitution is still pending. The court is waiting for the National Sports Governance Act 2025 to be sent to them, and they are looking at submissions and reservations about it.