Twelve ISL clubs, excluding NorthEast United and Jamshedpur FC, have written a strong-worded letter to the All India Football Federation (AIFF), accusing them of earning a significant profit of over Rs 3.4 crore from the current season. Previously, the sports ministry, in a meeting with the ISL clubs, informed that the governing body will ‘not make a rupee’ from the league this year and that forced the teams to put in money from their pocket to keep the tournament running.
According to reports, the clubs have written a five-page letter to the AIFF deputy secretary general, calling out the AIFF for retaining 40% of the revenue. They reminded that the teams are bearing almost the entire operational exposure, yet it’s the AIFF that is taking away almost half the profit.
“The annexed Financial Model records: AIFF Contributions: 0; AIFF Share on Ops: 0; Entire operational funding borne by clubs. Despite this extraordinary context, the federation stands to earn a surplus in excess of Rs 3.4 crores — even after publicly stating before the Hon’ble Sports Minister that it would not ‘make a rupee’ out of the league this year,” the letter said.
“It is unacceptable that, in a force majeure–like interim season not attributable to any fault of the Clubs, the Federation extracts profit while Clubs absorb unprecedented financial strain. If AIFF views the ISL as a purely AIFF league, then AIFF must bear the corresponding financial burden. If AIFF views it as a partnership, then partnership must exist in both economics and decision-making,” it further read.
AIFF didn’t inform ISL clubs about issuing new tender for long-term commercial partner
Despite the letter, the clubs have agreed to pay the first instalment of Rs 30 lakh, issued by the AIFF. However, they made it clear that the payment will be made only for the league to continue and asked the federation not to view it as their acceptance of the ongoing financial structure.
The clubs also expressed their frustration with AIFF issuing a tender for a long-term commercial partner without any prior information. In the same statement, they noted “No club was informed in advance of its publication, circulated a draft for review, or formally provided a copy of the final RFQ.”
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