2025–26 Indian Super League
| Season | 2025–26 |
|---|---|
| Dates | 14 February – 17 May 2026 |
| Teams | 14 |
| AFC Champions League 2 | TBD Goa (as Super Cup winners) |
| Matches | 33 |
| Goals | 72 (2.18 per match) |
| Top goalscorer | Jamie Maclaren (7 goals) |
| Biggest home win | Mohun Bagan 5–1 Mohammedan (28 February 2026) Mohun Bagan 5–1 Odisha (6 March 2026) |
| Biggest away win | Mohammedan 0–2 Goa (20 February 2026) Bengaluru 0–2 Punjab (27 February 2026) |
| Highest scoring | Mohun Bagan 5–1 Mohammedan (28 February 2026) Mohun Bagan 5-1 Odisha (6 March 2026) |
| Longest winning run | 4 matches Jamshedpur Mohun Bagan |
| Longest unbeaten run | 5 matches Mohun Bagan Mumbai City FC Goa |
| Longest winless run | 5 matches Delhi Kerala Blasters |
| Longest losing run | 4 matches Kerala Blasters Mohammedan |
| Highest attendance | 30,047 Mohun Bagan 5–1 Mohammedan (28 February 2026) |
| Average attendance | 10,397 |
← 2024–25 2026–27 →
All statistics correct as of 19 March 2026. | |
The 2025–26 Indian Super League is the 12th season of the Indian Super League (ISL) and the 30th season of top-tier Indian football. It commenced on 14th February and ends on 17th May 2026 with 91 matches to be played in this period.[1]
Mohun Bagan are the defending champions, having won their second Indian Super League title last season and seventh Indian title in the previous season.
Background
Developments
- In June 2025, the FSDL formally informed the ISL clubs and the AIFF that the 2025–26 season was on hold due to unresolved contractual issues, ahead of the expiry of the Master Rights Agreement in December.[2][3] After the intervention of the Supreme Court of India, which requested both parties to resolve the issues between them and start the 2025–26 season as quickly as they could, both parties promised that the new season would start in December.[4][5]
- The season was delayed even further after no bids came in for a tender for commercial partners floated by the AIFF on 16 October 2025.[6]
- On 6 January 2026, after discussions with the stake holders, sports minister Mansukh Mandaviya confirmed that ISL would begin on 14 February, and would be played in a single leg home-and-away format for a total of 91 matches.[7]
- On 12 January 2026, all 14 clubs confirmed their participation in this season. The AIFF outlined a total proposed budget of ₹24.26 crore for the season, a significant reduction from the previous seasons. The federation will contribute ₹9.77 crore upfront, while each participating club will provide ₹1 crore. The remaining expenses will be managed through allocated federation resources as the league progresses.[8]
- The Asian Football Confederation granted India a one-season exemption from the mandatory 24-match league requirement. With this relaxation, the ISL champions and Super Cup winners will be eligible to participate in the 2026–27 AFC Champions League Two qualifiers next season.[9]
- Following a media rights tender by the AIFF in January 2026, OTT sports streaming platform FanCode were announced as winners of the broadcasting rights and will be the official streaming partner of the 2025–26 season, while KPS Studios won the bid for production rights.[10] The Indian Super League (ISL) 2025–26 season will be broadcast on the Sony Sports Network after FanCode sublicensed the linear TV rights to the media conglomerate.[11]
Changes from last season
- This is the first season without the post-season ISL Cup playoffs.[12] The 14 participating clubs will compete in a single-leg round-robin format, with each team playing 13 matches. The table toppers at the end of the league will be crowned the CHAMPIONS.[1]
- The AIFF will implement relegation this season onwards, despite objections from all 14 clubs, who cited the shortened season as their primary concern.[13]
- ISL clubs qualify for AFC continental club competitions, with the league champions earning qualification for the subsequent season's AFC Champions League Two qualifying playoffs.[14]
Teams
Fourteen (14) teams from 12 cities are competing in the 12th season of Indian Super League – thirteen from the previous season and one promoted from the I-League. Churchill Brothers were initially declared the provisional champions of the I-League by AIFF, but the decision was later overturned by the Court of Arbitration for Sport who declared Inter Kashi as champions.[15]
On 7 October 2025, Hyderabad FC announced its relocation to Delhi and rebranded to SC Delhi.[16]
- Promoted from I-League
- Rebranded clubs
- Hyderabad FC shifted its base to Delhi and rebranded as Sporting Club Delhi.[17][18]
Stadiums and locations
Kolkata
Locations of Indian Super League teams
| Team | Location | Stadium | Capacity |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bengaluru | Bengaluru | Sree Kanteerava Stadium | 25,810 |
| Chennaiyin | Chennai | Marina Arena | 40,000 |
| SC Delhi | New Delhi | Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium | 60,254 |
| East Bengal | Kolkata | Vivekananda Yuba Bharati Krirangan | 68,000 |
| Goa | Margao | Fatorda Stadium | 19,000 |
| Inter Kashi[a] | Varanasi | Kishore Bharati Krirangan | 12,000 |
| Jamshedpur | Jamshedpur | JRD Tata Sports Complex | 24,424 |
| Kerala Blasters | Kochi | JLN Kaloor Intl. Stadium | 40,000 |
| Mohammedan | Kolkata | Kishore Bharati Krirangan | 12,000 |
| Mohun Bagan | Vivekananda Yuba Bharati Krirangan | 68,000 | |
| Mumbai City | Mumbai | Mumbai Football Arena | 7,000 |
| NorthEast United | Guwahati | IG Athletic Stadium | 21,600 |
| Odisha | Bhubaneswar | Kalinga Stadium | 15,000 |
| Punjab[b] | Mohali | Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium | 60,254 |
- ^ The club is based in Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh, but will play its home games in Kishore Bharati Krirangan at Kolkata due to ongoing construction on their own stadium getting built in Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh.[19]
- ^ The club is based in Mohali, Punjab, but will continue to play its home games in New Delhi until the 2025–26 season.[20]
Personnel and kits
| Team | Head coach | Captain (s) | Kit manufacturer | Shirt sponsor |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bengaluru | Renedy Singh | Sunil Chhetri | Puma | JSW |
| Chennaiyin | Clifford Miranda | Alberto Noguera | Six5Six | ISGL.in |
| SC Delhi | Tomasz Tchórz | Lamgoulen Hangshing | Six5Six | Universal Sompo General Insurance |
| East Bengal | Oscar Bruzon | Saúl Crespo | Trak Only | Emami |
| Goa | Manolo Márquez | Sandesh Jhingan | Six5Six | ISGL.in |
| Inter Kashi | Antonio López Habas | Sergio Llamas | Hummel | RDB Group |
| Jamshedpur | Owen Coyle | Stephen Eze | Nivia | Tata Steel |
| Kerala Blasters | David Català | Danish Farooq Bikash Yumnam |
Six5Six | White Gold |
| Mohun Bagan SG | Sergio Lobera | Subhasish Bose | Skechers | CESC |
| Mohammedan | Mehrajuddin Wadoo | Gaurav Bora | Rocky Sports | |
| Mumbai City | Petr Kratky | Lallianzuala Chhangte | Puma | Etihad Airways |
| NorthEast United | Juan Pedro Benali | Michel Zabaco | Reebok | Meghalaya Tourism |
| Odisha | TG Purushothaman | Carlos Delgado | Trak Only | Odisha Tourism |
| Punjab | Panagiotis Dilberis | Nikhil Prabhu | Shiv Naresh | DafaNews |
Managerial changes
| Team | Outgoing manager | Manner of departure | Date of vacancy | Position in table | Incoming manager | Date of appointment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kerala Blasters | TG Purushothaman | End of interim spell | 25 March 2025[21] | Pre-season | David Català | 25 March 2025[22] |
| SC Delhi | Shameel Chembakath | 31 May 2025[23] | Tomasz Tchórz | 19 October 2025[24] | ||
| Chennaiyin | Owen Coyle | Mutual consent | 17 July 2025[25] | Clifford Miranda | 12 September 2025[26] | |
| Jamshedpur | Khalid Jamil | Signed by India | 13 August 2025[27] | Owen Coyle | 24 January 2026[28] | |
| Mohun Bagan | José Francisco Molina | Sacked | 26 November 2025[29] | Sergio Lobera | 26 November 2025[30] | |
| Bengaluru | Gerard Zaragoza | Mutual consent | 14 November 2025[31] | Renedy Singh | 14 November 2025[32] | |
| Odisha | Sergio Lobera | 26 November 2025[30] | TG Purushothaman | 5 February 2026[33] |
Foreign players
The AIFF allows teams to register a maximum of six foreign players. A maximum of four can be fielded in a match at a time.[34]
Due to the uncertainty surrounding Indian football, a number of foreign players exited their clubs before the start of the shortened season.[35][36]
League table
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mohun Bagan[a] | 5 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 14 | 2 | +12 | 13 | |
| 2 | Jamshedpur | 6 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 7 | 4 | +3 | 13 | Qualification for the Champions League Two qualifying playoffs[b] |
| 3 | Mumbai City | 5 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 7 | 4 | +3 | 11 | |
| 4 | Goa | 5 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 5 | 2 | +3 | 9 | Qualified for the Champions League Two qualifying playoffs[c] |
| 5 | East Bengal | 5 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 9 | 4 | +5 | 8 | |
| 6 | Bengaluru | 5 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 5 | 4 | +1 | 8 | |
| 7 | NorthEast United | 5 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 5 | 7 | −2 | 6 | |
| 8 | Punjab | 4 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 3 | +1 | 5 | |
| 9 | Inter Kashi | 5 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 5 | 7 | −2 | 5 | |
| 10 | Chennaiyin | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 4 | −2 | 4 | |
| 11 | Odisha | 3 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 6 | −4 | 2 | |
| 12 | SC Delhi | 5 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 10 | −6 | 2 | |
| 13 | Kerala Blasters | 5 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 2 | 7 | −5 | 1 | |
| 14 | Mohammedan | 4 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 2 | 10 | −8 | 0 | Relegation to Indian Football League |
Updated to match(es) played on 19 March 2026. Source: Indian Super League
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored; 4) head-to-head points; 5) head-to-head goal difference; 6) head-to-head goals scored; 7) fair play ranking; 8) drawing of lots
(Note: Head-to-head record is used only after all the matches between the teams in question have been played).
Notes:
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored; 4) head-to-head points; 5) head-to-head goal difference; 6) head-to-head goals scored; 7) fair play ranking; 8) drawing of lots
(Note: Head-to-head record is used only after all the matches between the teams in question have been played).
Notes:
- ^ Mohun Bagan are banned from AFC competitions until the 2028–29 season due to refusing to travel to Iran to fulfil their 2025–26 AFC Champions League Two fixtures.[37] If Mohun Began become ISL champions, the ISL league runners-up will instead qualify for the AFC Champions League Two preliminary stage.[38]
- ^ As per Article 4 of entry regulations for AFC’s club competitions, each club needs to play a minimum of 24 matches per season in the domestic top division that runs for at least eight months, to receive direct slots in AFC club competitions. Since Indian clubs will have played just 19 games, the ISL winners will enter the qualifying stage of the ACL2 instead of the group stage.
- ^ Goa qualified for the AFC Champions League Two qualifying playoffs as the 2025–26 AIFF Super Cup winners.[39]
Results
Match by match
Form
Position by round
Season statistics
- As of 19 March 2026[40]
Top scorers
| Rank | Player | Team | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jamie Maclaren | Mohun Bagan | 7 |
| 2 | Youssef Ezzejjari | East Bengal | 5 |
| 3 | Effiong Nsungusi | Punjab | 4 |
| Dejan Dražić | Goa | ||
| 5 | Lallianzuala Chhangte | Mumbai City | 3 |
| 6 | 7 players | 2 | |
Top assists
| Rank | Player | Team | Assists |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Anirudh Thapa | Mohun Bagan | 2 |
| Liston Colaco | |||
| Subhasish Bose | |||
| Madih Talal | Jamshedpur | ||
| Nikhil Poojary | Bengaluru | ||
| M. Kipgen | Punjab | ||
| Ebindas Yesudasan | Kerala Blasters | ||
| 8 | 34 players | 1 | |
Clean sheets
| Rank | Player | Team | Clean sheets |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Vishal Kaith | Mohun Bagan | 3 |
| Hrithik Tiwari | Goa | ||
| Albino Gomes | Jamshedpur | ||
| 4 | Gurpreet Singh Sandhu | Bengaluru | 2 |
| Prabhsukhan Singh Gill | East Bengal | ||
| Phurba Lachenpa | Mumbai City | ||
| 7 | Mohammad Nawaz | Chennaiyin | 1 |
| Amrinder Singh | Odisha | ||
| Lluis Tarrés | Inter Kashi | ||
| Arshdeep Singh | Punjab |
Discipline
Player
- Most yellow cards: 3
- Pronay Halder (Jamshedpur)
- Joni Kauko (Mumbai City)
- Sahil Panwar (Mumbai City)
- Ayush Chhetri (Goa)
- Mark Zothanpuia (Jamshedpur)
- Naocha Singh (Kerala Blasters)
- Most red cards: 1
- Valpuia (Mumbai City)
- Effiong Nsungusi (Punjab)
- Vincy Barretto (Jamshedpur)
Club
- Most yellow cards: 17
- NorthEast United
- Most red cards: 1
- Jamshedpur
- Mumbai City
- Punjab
Attendance
- As of 19 March 2026
Regular season
| Pos | Team | Total | High | Low | Average | Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mohun Bagan | 101,649 | 30,047 | 19,727[41] | 25,412 | −28.9% |
| 2 | East Bengal | 88,153 | 22,899 | 12,853 | 17,631 | −4.3% |
| 3 | Bengaluru | 55,798 | 20,214 | 9,614 | 13,950 | +17.9% |
| 4 | Kerala Blasters | 30,264 | 16,243 | 6,435 | 10,088 | −36.5% |
| 5 | NorthEast United | 7,473 | 7,473 | 7,473 | 7,473 | −29.0% |
| 6 | Delhi | 6,732 | 6,732 | 6,732 | 6,732 | +343.8%ǂ |
| 7 | Jamshedpur | 19,427 | 7,856 | 4,341 | 6,476 | −54.7% |
| 8 | Punjab | 7,113 | 3,897 | 3,216 | 3,557 | +18.3% |
| 9 | Goa | 6,737 | 5,160 | 1,577 | 3,369 | −67.3% |
| 10 | Mumbai City | 9,527 | 3,911 | 2,190 | 3,176 | −14.9% |
| 11 | Odisha | 5,639 | 3,218 | 2,421 | 2,820 | −63.1% |
| 12 | Mohammedan | 4,580 | 4,240 | 340 | 2,290 | −44.1% |
| 13 | Inter Kashi | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | −98.6%† |
| 14 | Chennaiyin | NA | ||||
| League total | 343,102 | 30,047 | 10 | 10,397 | −6.2% |
Source:
Notes:
†Inter Kashi played in the I-League in the 2024–25 season.
ǂSporting Club Delhi played in the 2024–25 season as Hyderabad FC.
By home matches
| Team \ Home Game | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mohun Bagan | 29,110 | 22,765 | 30,047 | 19,727 [41] | 101,649 | |||
| Goa | 1,577 | 5,160 | 6,737 | |||||
| Bengaluru | 12,347 | 13,623 | 9,614 | 20,214 | 55,798 | |||
| Chennaiyin | ||||||||
| East Bengal | 18,636 | 20,386 | 22,899 | 12,853 | 13,379 | 88,153 | ||
| Inter Kashi | 10 | 10 | ||||||
| Jamshedpur | 4,341 | 7,230 | 7,856 | 19,427 | ||||
| Kerala Blasters | 16,243 | 7,586 | 6,435 | 30,264 | ||||
| Mohammedan | 4,240 | 340 | 4,580 | |||||
| Mumbai City | 3,426 | 3,911 | 2,190 | 9,527 | ||||
| NorthEast United | 7,473 | 7,473 | ||||||
| Odisha | 2,421 | 3,218 | 5,639 | |||||
| Punjab | 3,897 | 3,216 | 7,113 | |||||
| Delhi | 6,732 | 6,732 |
Legend: Highest Lowest
See also
- 2025–26 Indian Women's League
- 2025–26 Indian Football League
- 2025–26 Indian State Leagues
- 2026 Reliance Foundation Development League
References
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