AIFF to invite bids for direct entry in IWL if teams withdraw

Panaji: The All India Football Federation (AIFF) will invite bids for direct entry in the Indian Women’s League (IWL) if, as expected, teams pull out of the next edition due to an additional financial burden.

Sixteen teams are taking part in the ongoing IWL being played in Ahmedabad. Divided into two groups, the top four from each group will qualify for the knockout stage and also get direct slots in next season’s IWL, to be played on a home-and-away format for the first time.

It is mandatory for these eight teams to have minimum 10 Indian players on a fully professional annual contract worth a minimum of Rs 3.2 lakh. Nobody has been left in any doubt that some teams will feel the pinch and may opt out, prompting the AIFF to have a back-up plan.

“The League committee which met last week agreed on direct bids for IWL, but the process would be initiated only if qualified teams refuse to participate,” a senior official told TOI.

If any team opts out, the AIFF will invite bids of a minimum of Rs 2 crore from corporates for direct entry in IWL. Teams with higher bid value will be accepted while companies will need to have a minimum net-worth of Rs 50 crore.

Unlike the I-League where the AIFF announced a three-tier bid system with cities classified as tier 1, tier 2 and tier 3, IWL bidders would have uniform minimum bid fee of Rs 2 crore.

“The new teams will have immunity from relegation for two seasons,” said the official.

This season’s IWL has been riddled with problems as teams complained of matches being scheduled at 8am, while only evening games, less than half of the total number, are being streamed on the federation’s official YouTube page.

According to sources, the AIFF through its marketing partner had initiated talks with prospective broadcasters but could not arrive at a consensus. The federation then decided to stream the matches on its YouTube channel, floating the tender for production on April 21, just four days before the league was to kick off in Ahmedabad.


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