Indian Football and Supreme Court: Finally, the Saga Ends!

The Hon'ble Supreme Court of India, has finally delivered its long awaited verdict, approving the All India Football Federation's Constitution. With this judgment, the Hon'ble Apex Court does not only resolve an eight year old judicial procedure but also clears the air of uncertainty that was looming over the head of Indian football and all of its stakeholders. In a seventy eight page long judgment, Justice P.S. Narasimha and Justice Joymalya Bagchi directed the AIFF to conclude all the formalities and adopt the Constitution within four weeks through a special general body meeting. The Hon'ble Supreme Court has also ruled that Kalyan Chaubey and his administration will be allowed to complete their tenure and no fresh elections are to be conducted until, the current regime's tenure is ending on September, 2026. Now with this historic judgment, the I-League clubs have benefitted as their demand of promotion and relegation in India's top tier league, for which ten I-League clubs had even written to the Hon'ble Supreme Court as well back in August has been granted as the approved constitution mandates for promotion and relegation which will allow I-League clubs to participate in India's top tier football competition. The Hon'ble Supreme Court stated, "healthy competition in Indian football shall only benefit and take the sport to new heights". The draft constitution states that, "Seniormost Top Division League shall mean the league competition owned, operated and recognised by the AIFF, that implements the principles of promotion and relegation...". This line is of great significance as it suggests that Indian football is ready to move on from the control of private entities. Organisations like, FSDL or KMPG, can act as organizers but they cannot be owners. Thus the top tier league of Indian football, will no longer be a private, closed league, but will be controlled and owned by the AIFF with teams from lower divisions coming in from time to time. The approved draft Constitution also has brought in several governance reforms, which includes twelve year tenure for position holders, compulsory representation of women in the executive committee and most importantly, provides a provision for no confidence against the leadership in power. The executive committee will comprise of fourteen to fifteen members with at least two women among five eminent players, in compliance with the National Sports Governance Act, 2025. The judgment came just in time as FIFA and AFC had jointly issued an ultimatum to India that within 30th of October, they had to get their Constitution approved by the Supreme Court, failing to do which, will result in a ban which will prohibit Indian National Team to play in international matches as well as hamper clubs like Mohun Bagan Super Giant or FC Goa, who are currently representing India in the AFC Champions League Two. AIFF Secretary General M. Satyanarayan, praised the judgment. He said, "The winner is Indian football. The Supreme Court's decision provides much needed clarity and stability. Now we can concentrate on governance reforms and development on the ground rather than being stuck in litigation". With both the Constitution approved and the commercial tender process underway, Indian football can finally afford to move on from litigation and get the football calender back on track. The Hon'ble Supreme Court has given a proper solution which now can be used as a base to avoid FIFA and AFC's ban threat, which ensures India's participation in the international events while ensuring a transparent and competitive domestic structure.