2023–24 I-League
16th season of the I-League
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The 2023–24 I-League was the 17th season of the I-League and the second season as the second tier of Indian football league system.[3]
| Season | 2023–24 |
|---|---|
| Dates | 28 October 2023 – 13 April 2024[1][2] |
| Champions | Mohammedan (1st title) |
| Promoted | Mohammedan |
| Relegated | NEROCA TRAU |
| Matches | 154 |
| Goals | 503 (3.27 per match) |
| Top goalscorer | Álex Sánchez (19 goals) |
| Biggest home win | Churchill Brothers 7–0 Rajasthan United (10 April 2024) |
| Biggest away win | TRAU 0–5 Sreenidi Deccan (19 November 2023) |
| Highest scoring | Rajasthan United 5–4 TRAU (22 December 2023) Inter Kashi 5–4 Aizawl (18 March 2024) Rajasthan United 3–6 Delhi (5 April 2024) |
| Longest winning run | 6 matches Gokulam Kerala |
| Longest unbeaten run | Mohammedan Inter Kashi (11 games) |
| Longest winless run | NEROCA (11 games) |
| Longest losing run | NEROCA (11 games) |
| Highest attendance | 24,678 Mohammedan 1–3 Delhi (13 April 2024) |
| Lowest attendance | 50 NEROCA 2–3 Churchill Brothers (8 March 2024) |
| Total attendance | 293,962 |
| Average attendance | 1,933 |
← 2022–23 2024–25 → | |
Mohammedan won the I-League for the first time and were promoted to the Indian Super League, while TRAU and NEROCA were relegated to I-League 2.[4][5][6][7][8][9]
Changes from last season
- Promoted to Indian Super League
- Promoted from I-League 2
- Relegated to I-League 2
- Corporate entries
The AIFF accepted five bids for direct entry to I-League.[10][11][12]
Bunkerhill Pvt Ltd (Ambala) withdrew its bid after inking a majority shareholding in Mohammedan. Nimida United Sports Development Pvt Ltd (Bengaluru United) and Concatenate Advest Advisory Pvt Ltd (Delhi) were unable to fulfill the bid conditions.[16][17]
Inter Kashi, from a tier-2 city (Varanasi), will have relegation immunity for two seasons; while Namdhari, from a tier-3 city (Bhaini Ala), will be free from relegation for one season.[18]
Rules
After the clubs requested to increase the maximum number of players allowed in a squad, the Committee decided to increase the player quota from 30 to 35. Clubs will also have to sign eight U-22 players.[19]
Format
AIFF proposed to revamp the league format by dividing the 16 teams into two conferences or zones, similar to Major League Soccer, with the top 4 teams from each conference qualifying for the playoffs and the bottom four battling to avoid relegation, instead of traditional home-away format.[20][21] The change was suggested to make the league cost-effective for clubs by reducing travel time. However, with only 13 teams left to participate in the league, the proposed changes were dropped in favor of the traditional home-away format.[22][23]
Teams
13 teams competed in this edition of the I-League; nine from the previous season, two promoted from the 2022–23 I-League 2, and two with direct entry.[22][14] Five teams are set to play their home games out of their home state or city because of various reasons.[24][25]
Stadiums and locations
| Team | State/UT | City | Stadium | Capacity |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aizawl | Mizoram | Aizawl | Rajiv Gandhi Stadium | 20,000 |
| Churchill Brothers | Goa | Vasco | Tilak Maidan | 5,000 |
| Delhi[a] | Delhi | New Delhi | Namdhari Stadium | 1,000 |
| Gokulam Kerala | Kerala | Kozhikode | EMS Stadium | 50,000 |
| Inter Kashi[b] | Uttar Pradesh | Varanasi | Ekana Football Stadium | 5,000 |
| Kalyani Stadium | 20,000 | |||
| Mohammedan | West Bengal | Kolkata | Naihati Stadium | 20,000 |
| Vivekananda Yuba Bharati Krirangan | 68,000 | |||
| Namdhari | Punjab | Bhaini Sahib | Namdhari Stadium | 1,000 |
| NEROCA[c] | Manipur | Imphal | Kalyani Stadium | 20,000 |
| SSA Stadium | 5,000 | |||
| Rajasthan United[d] | Rajasthan | Jaipur | Deccan Arena | 1,500 |
| Kalyani Stadium | 20,000 | |||
| Namdhari Stadium | 1,000 | |||
| Real Kashmir | Jammu & Kashmir | Srinagar | TRC Turf Ground | 11,000 |
| Shillong Lajong | Meghalaya | Shillong | SSA Stadium | 5,000 |
| Sreenidi Deccan | Telangana | Hyderabad | Deccan Arena | 1,500 |
| TRAU[c] | Manipur | Imphal | Kalyani Stadium | 20,000 |
- The club is based in Uttar Pradesh but has only played one of its home games at the Ekana Football Stadium so far.
- The club is based in Manipur but will play its home games in West Bengal due to the 2023 Manipur violence
Personnel and sponsorship
| Team | Head coach | Captain | Kit manufacturer | Shirt sponsor |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aizawl | NECS Limited[27] | |||
| Churchill Brothers | Churchill Brothers | |||
| Delhi | Colordesign India[29] | |||
| Gokulam Kerala | CSB Bank[31] | |||
| Inter Kashi | Cello | |||
| Mohammedan | Opinion Edge[33] | |||
| Namdhari | Namdharis | |||
| NEROCA | Wolf 777 News | |||
| Rajasthan United | AU Small Finance Bank | |||
| Real Kashmir | Football for Peace | |||
| Shillong Lajong | Meghalaya Tourism | |||
| Sreenidi Deccan | Sreenidhi Sports Academy | |||
| TRAU | TLT Sports Academy |
Managerial changes
| Team | Outgoing manager | Manner of departure | Date of vacancy | Round | Table | Incoming manager | Date of appointment | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gokulam Kerala | End of contract | 31 May 2023 | Pre-season | 6 June 2023 | [36] | |||
| Delhi | 31 May 2023 | 25 June 2023 | [37] | |||||
| Inter Kashi | Inaugural manager | 29 June 2023 | [38] | |||||
| Churchill Brothers | End of contract | 31 May 2023 | 29 July 2023 | [39] | ||||
| Mohammedan | Sacked | 22 August 2023 | 29 August 2023 | [40] | ||||
| Aizawl | End of interim period | 31 May 2023 | 2 September 2023 | [41] | ||||
| NEROCA | End of contract | 1 October 2023 | 8 October 2023 | [42] | ||||
| Namdhari | TBC | 6 October 2023 | [43] | |||||
| Real Kashmir | 31 May 2023 | 27 October 2023 | [44] | |||||
| Aizawl | Mutual Agreement | 4 November 2023 | 2 | 10 | 4 November 2023 | [45] | ||
| Namdhari | Sacked | 25 November 2023 | 6 | 10 | 25 November 2023 | [46] | ||
| Churchill Brothers | 6 January 2024 | 9 | 11 | 27 January 2024 | [47][48] | |||
| Aizawl | End of Interim Period | 22 January 2024 | 4 | 11 | 23 January 2024 | [49] | ||
| NEROCA | Sacked | 9 February 2024 | 11 | 13 | 9 February 2024 | |||
| Aizawl | 27 February 2024 | 15 | 8 | 27 February 2024 | [50][51] | |||
| Gokulam Kerala | 31 March 2024 | 22 | 5 | 31 March 2024 | [52] | |||
Foreign players
Initially, the AIFF committee decided to reduce registered foreign players to five in the squad and three in the starting line-up and remove the mandatory Asian quota.[53][54]
However, on 22nd August 2023, the AIFF decided to retain the number of foreigners a club can sign in the I-League. Like the 2022–23 season, clubs can register six foreign players in their matchday squad. However, they can field only four (one must be from an AFC Member Association) at any given point during a match.[55]
League table
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mohammedan (C, P) | 24 | 15 | 7 | 2 | 44 | 22 | +22 | 52 | Promotion to Indian Super League |
| 2 | Sreenidi Deccan | 24 | 14 | 6 | 4 | 54 | 26 | +28 | 48 | |
| 3 | Gokulam Kerala | 24 | 12 | 6 | 6 | 55 | 34 | +21 | 42 | |
| 4 | Inter Kashi | 24 | 11 | 8 | 5 | 47 | 41 | +6 | 41 | |
| 5 | Real Kashmir | 24 | 11 | 7 | 6 | 36 | 19 | +17 | 40 | |
| 6 | Delhi | 24 | 11 | 2 | 11 | 44 | 40 | +4 | 35 | |
| 7 | Churchill Brothers | 24 | 9 | 6 | 9 | 40 | 31 | +9 | 33 | |
| 8 | Shillong Lajong | 24 | 8 | 7 | 9 | 36 | 37 | −1 | 31 | |
| 9 | Namdhari | 24 | 7 | 6 | 11 | 29 | 40 | −11 | 27 | |
| 10 | Aizawl | 22 | 6 | 7 | 9 | 36 | 35 | +1 | 25 | |
| 11 | Rajasthan United | 24 | 6 | 7 | 11 | 40 | 63 | −23 | 25 | |
| 12 | NEROCA (R) | 23 | 4 | 2 | 17 | 26 | 61 | −35 | 14 | Relegation to I-League 2 |
| 13 | TRAU (R) | 23 | 4 | 1 | 18 | 26 | 64 | −38 | 13 |
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Head-to-head points; 3) Head-to-head goal difference; 4) Total goal difference; 5) Total number of goals scored; 6) drawing of lots
(Note: Head-to-head record is used only after all the matches between the teams in question have been played).
(C) Champions; (P) Promoted; (R) Relegated
Results
Charity match
The Mizoram Football Association in collaboration with Mizo Professional Footballers Association held a charity match on June 21. This match featured ISL vs I-League players from Mizoram to raise funds for Cyclone Remal victims.[56]
Season statistics
- As of 13 April 2024
Top scorers
| Rank | Player | Team | Goals[57] |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Gokulam Kerala | 19 | |
| 2 | Rajasthan United | 16 | |
| 3 | Aizawl | 15 | |
| 4 | Mohammedan | 13 | |
| Delhi | |||
| 6 | Real Kashmir | 12 | |
| Inter Kashi | |||
| 8 | Sreenidi Deccan | 11 | |
| 9 | Sreenidi Deccan | 9 | |
| 10 | Churchill Brothers | 7 | |
| Shillong Lajong/Churchill Brothers |
Hat-tricks
| Player | For | Against | Result | Date | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rajasthan United | Delhi | 3–4 (A) | 2 November 2023 | [58] | |
| Gokulam Kerala | Rajasthan United | 5–0 (H) | 9 November 2023 | [59] | |
| Aizawl | NEROCA | 3–1 (A) | 14 November 2023 | [60] | |
| Rajasthan United | TRAU | 5-4 (H) | 22 December 2023 | [61] | |
| Mohammedan | Rajasthan United | 5-1 (H) | 13 February 2024 | [62] | |
| Churchill Brothers | NEROCA | 3–2 (A) | 8 March 2024 | [63] | |
| Rajasthan United | NEROCA | 5–1 (H) | 11 March 2024 | [64] | |
| Delhi | Shillong Lajong | 3–1 (H) | 28 March 2024 | [65] |
Top assists
| Rank | Player | Team | Assists |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Inter Kashi | 12 | |
| 2 | Inter Kashi | 8 | |
| Gokulam Kerala | |||
| 4 | Sreenidi Deccan | 7 | |
| 5 | Namdhari | 6 | |
| Mohammedan | |||
| Churchill Brothers | |||
| 8 | Rajasthan United | 5 | |
| Shillong Lajong | |||
| Gokulam Kerala | |||
| TRAU | |||
| Delhi | |||
| Churchill Brothers |
Clean sheets
| Rank | Player | Team | Clean sheets |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Real Kashmir | 12 | |
| 2 | Mohammedan | 8 | |
| 3 | Sreenidi Deccan | 7 | |
| Churchill Brothers | |||
| 5 | Aizawl | 5 | |
| 6 | Gokulam Kerala | 3 | |
| Rajashthan United | |||
| Delhi | |||
| Gokulam Kerala | |||
| 10 | Namdhari | 2 | |
| Shillong Lajong | |||
| Inter Kashi | |||
| Rajashthan United | |||
| Namdhari |
- Paul was substituted after 65 minutes against TRAU after Dabas' red card
Attendances
Overall
| Pos | Team | Total | High | Low | Average | Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Shillong Lajong | 75,803 | 7,816 | 4,891 | 6,316 | +255.8%† |
| 2 | Gokulam Kerala | 61,349 | 19,764 | 600 | 5,112 | +99.8% |
| 3 | Mohammedan | 52,368 | 24,678 | 200 | 4,758 | +199.2% |
| 4 | Real Kashmir | 38,492 | 7,632 | 1,100 | 3,499 | +22.4% |
| 5 | Aizawl | 18,199 | 3,485 | 300 | 1,819 | −22.0% |
| 6 | Churchill Brothers | 13,881 | 2,314 | 500 | 1,156 | −36.2% |
| 7 | Delhi | 6,976 | 1,182 | 150 | 581 | +239.8%† |
| 8 | Inter Kashi | 6,294 | 2,687 | 123 | 524 | n/a* |
| 9 | Namdhari | 6,147 | 1,200 | 300 | 512 | n/a* |
| 10 | Sreenidi Deccan | 4,906 | 900 | 80 | 408 | −21.5% |
| 11 | NEROCA | 4,282 | 2,500 | 50 | 362 | −89.4% |
| 12 | TRAU | 3,061 | 512 | 100 | 255 | −88.2% |
| 13 | Rajasthan United | 2,204 | 500 | 86 | 183 | −86.6% |
| League total | 293,962 | 24,678 | 50 | 1,933 | +6.3% |
Source: I-League
Notes:
† Teams played previous season in I-League 2.
* Teams that joined I-League through corporate direct entry.
Attendances by home matches
| Team \ Match played | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Shillong Lajong | 5,585 | 5,248 | 5,987 | 6,425 | 6,718 | 6,115 | 7,438 | 4,891 | 5,812 | 6,617 | 7,151 | 7,816 | 75,803 |
| Gokulam Kerala | 19,764 | 10,485 | 4,388 | 13,425 | 2,000 | 2,500 | 2,500 | 2,023 | 1,540 | 1,024 | 1,100 | 600 | 61,349 |
| Mohammedan | 4,900 | 3,786 | 1,773 | 5,825 | 3,885 | 1,821 | 2,500 | N/A[a] | 200 | 1,000 | 2,000 | 24,678 | 52,368 |
| Real Kashmir | 1,872 | 6,200 | 4,728 | 3,172 | 3,659 | 2,500 | N/A[b] | 3,740 | 1,635 | 7,632 | 2,254 | 1,100 | 38,492 |
| Aizawl | 767 | 2,000 | 3,004 | 3,485 | 2,879 | 1,000 | 1,462 | 1,246 | 2,056 | 300 | N/A[c] | N/A[c] | 18,199 |
| Churchill Brothers | 2,314 | 1,895 | 2,000 | 1,683 | 500 | 1,633 | 825 | 1,025 | 981 | 200 | 275 | 550 | 13,881 |
| Delhi | 600 | 618 | 1,100 | 1,182 | 1,058 | 918 | 150 | 200 | 500 | 250 | 200 | 200 | 6,976 |
| Inter Kashi | 2,687 | 500 | 123 | 259 | 127 | 447 | 187 | 200 | 752 | 325 | 232 | 455 | 6,294 |
| Namdhari | 561 | 350 | 300 | 898 | 1,200 | 488 | 300 | 500 | 500 | 250 | 400 | 400 | 6,147 |
| Sreenidi Deccan | 750 | 696 | 900 | 650 | 750 | 123 | 80 | 200 | 168 | 250 | 149 | 190 | 4,906 |
| NEROCA | 200 | 212 | 153 | 258 | 259 | 2,500 | 100 | 50 | 150 | 100 | 200 | 100 | 4,282 |
| TRAU | 200 | 315 | 100 | 128 | 422 | 128 | 512 | 259 | 222 | 152 | 500 | 123 | 3,061 |
| Rajasthan United | 150 | 200 | 88 | 280 | 88 | 86 | 312 | 100 | 100 | 500 | 100 | 200 | 2,204 |
- Real Kashmir's home match against Gokulam Kerala was played behind closed doors due to security concerns.
Legend: Highest
Lowest
Updated to game(s) played on 13 April 2024
Source: I-League
Awards
Álex Sánchez (Gokulam Kerala) has won the Hero of the match award the most times (7).
| Hero of the match | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Match no. | Player | Team | Match no. | Player | Team | Match no. | Player | Team |
| 1 | Real Kashmir | 2 | Gokulam Kerala | 3 | Sreenidi Deccan | |||
| 4 | Mohammedan | 5 | Delhi | 6 | Churchill Brothers | |||
| 7 | Rajasthan United | 8 | Sreenidi Deccan | 9 | Shillong Lajong | |||
| 10 | Real Kashmir | 11 | Gokulam Kerala | 12 | Inter Kashi | |||
| 13 | Aizawl | 14 | Mohammedan | 15 | Churchill Brothers | |||
| 16 | Shillong Lajong | 17 | Gokulam Kerala | 18 | Mohammedan | |||
| 19 | Namdhari | 20 | Gokulam Kerala | 21 | Rajasthan United | |||
| 22 | Sreenidi Deccan | 23 | Aizawl | 24 | Delhi | |||
| 25 | Inter Kashi | 26 | Namdhari | 27 | Mohammedan | |||
| 28 | Shillong Lajong | 29 | Sreenidi Deccan | 30 | Mohammedan | |||
| 31 | Aizawl | 32 | Shillong Lajong | 33 | Churchill Brothers | |||
| 34 | Real Kashmir | 35 | Sreenidi Deccan | 36 | Shillong Lajong | |||
| 37 | Sreenidi Deccan | 38 | Churchill Brothers | 39 | NEROCA | |||
| 40 | Real Kashmir | 41 | Aizawl | 42 | Delhi | |||
| 43 | Inter Kashi | 44 | Aizawl | 45 | Gokulam Kerala | |||
| 46 | Rajasthan United | 47 | Mohammedan | 48 | Delhi | |||
| 49 | Shillong Lajong | 50 | Rajasthan United | 51 | Sreenidi Deccan | |||
| 52 | Aizawl | 53 | Mohammedan | 54 | Aizawl | |||
| 55 | TRAU | 56 | Churchill Brothers | 57 | Real Kashmir | |||
| 58 | Sreenidi Deccan | 59 | Mohammedan | 60 | Inter Kashi | |||
| 61 | Rajasthan United | 62 | Real Kashmir | 63 | Gokulam Kerala | |||
| 64 | Namdhari | 65 | Mohammedan | 66 | Gokulam Kerala | |||
| 67 | Aizawl | 68 | Rajasthan United | 69 | Shillong Lajong | |||
| 70 | Delhi | 71 | Mohammedan | 72 | Inter Kashi | |||
| 73 | Sreenidi Deccan | 74 | No one was given due to the cancellation of the match | 75 | Rajasthan United | |||
| 76 | Gokulam Kerala | 77 | Churchill Brothers | 78 | Aizawl | |||
| 79 | TRAU | 80 | Gokulam Kerala | 81 | Mohammedan | |||
| 82 | Namdhari | 83 | Sreenidi Deccan | 84 | Inter Kashi | |||
| 85 | Delhi | 86 | Gokulam Kerala | 87 | Mohammedan | |||
| 88 | Shillong Lajong | 89 | Inter Kashi | 90 | Real Kashmir | |||
| 91 | Gokulam Kerala | 92 | Sreenidi Deccan | 93 | Delhi | |||
| 94 | Rajasthan United | 95 | Real Kashmir | 96 | Gokulam Kerala | |||
| 97 | Sreenidi Deccan | 98 | TRAU | 99 | Inter Kashi | |||
| 100 | Churchill Brothers | 101 | Real Kashmir | 102 | Shillong Lajong | |||
| 103 | Namdhari | 104 | Sreenidi Deccan | 105 | Rajasthan United | |||
| 106 | Namdhari | 107 | Mohammedan | 108 | Real Kashmir | |||
| 109 | No one was given due to the cancellation of the match | 110 | Rajasthan United | 111 | Churchill Brothers | |||
| 112 | Inter Kashi | 113 | Shillong Lajong | 114 | Mohammedan | |||
| 115 | Sreenidi Deccan | 116 | Gokulam Kerala | 117 | Rajasthan United | |||
| 118 | TRAU | 119 | Mohammedan | 120 | Inter Kashi | |||
| 121 | Real Kashmir | 122 | Gokulam Kerala | 123 | Rajasthan United | |||
| 124 | Namdhari | 125 | Delhi | 126 | Mohammedan | |||
| 127 | Sreenidi Deccan | 128 | Inter Kashi | 129 | NEROCA | |||
| 130 | Namdhari | 131 | Inter Kashi | 132 | Real Kashmir | |||
| 133 | Delhi | 134 | Churchill Brothers | 135 | NEROCA | |||
| 136 | Delhi | 137 | Aizawl | 138 | Real Kashmir | |||
| 139 | Inter Kashi | 140 | Sreenidi Deccan | 141 | Namdhari | |||
| 142 | Churchill Brothers | 143 | NEROCA | 144 | Delhi | |||
| 145 | Churchill Brothers | 146 | TRAU | 147 | Mohammedan | |||
| 148 | Gokulam Kerala | 149 | Inter Kashi | 150 | Churchill Brothers | |||
| 151 | Gokulam Kerala | 152 | Namdhari | 153 | Sreenidi Deccan | |||
| 154 | Delhi | |||||||
Annual awards
| Award | Winner |
|---|---|
| Best Player | |
| Best Goalkeeper | |
| Jarnail Singh Award (Best Defender) | |
| Best Midfielder | |
| Highest Scorer | |
| Best Emerging Player | |
| Syed Abdul Rahim Award (Best Coach) | |
| Fair Play Contest | TRAU |
| Best Match Organisation | Mohammedan |
| Best Media Operations | Rajasthan United |
| Source: I-League | |
See also
- Men
- 2023–24 Indian Super League (Tier I)
- 2023–24 I-League 2 (Tier III)
- 2023–24 I-League 3 (Tier IV)
- 2023–24 Indian State Leagues (Tier V)
- 2024 Super Cup
- 2023 Durand Cup
- 2024 Reliance Foundation Development League
- Women