Lonestar Kashmir FC granted special exemption by League Committee to participate…
I-League 2nd Division is set to commence from the last week of January comprising of eighteen teams including reserve teams of eight Indian Super League clubs (except Northeast United FC and Odisha FC) and two I-League clubs (Punjab FC and Indian Arrows).
Lonestar Kashmir have been granted a special exemption to participate by the league committee after they could not fulfill the licensing criteria due to reasons beyond their control.
Decline in number of parent clubs
Although the number of participating teams has increased from 16 to 18, the majority of them are reserve teams after many clubs failed to clear the licensing process. In the previous edition, there were 10 standalone outfits whereas the number has gone down to eight now. Hindustan FC, South United, Ozone FC, Fateh Hyderabad, Chhinga Veng, Rainbow AC have failed to make the cut this time after making an appearance last season. It must be noted that Ozone FC was the one of the finalists last year.
Meanwhile, six teams including reserve teams of four teams are slated to make their debut. They are as follows: FC Bengaluru United, Rajasthan FC, Indian Arrows (reserves), Punjab FC (reserves), Hyderabad FC (reserves) and Mumbai City FC (reserves).
Road to Final
In the Preliminary round the teams will play on a home and away basis against other teams within a group. The winners of each group along with the best second-placed team between Group A and C would qualify for the final round. However, if reserve teams of ISL clubs finish as winners or runners-up in any group, the position will be passed on to the next non-ISL team.
In the final round, four qualified teams will play at the central venue on a ‘single-leg’ league system. Eventually, the winners will qualify to the next edition of I-League i.e. Hero I-League 2020-21.
The Groups of the preliminary round are as mentioned below:
Group A: Lonestar Kashmir FC, Punjab FC (reserves), Garhwal FC, Rajasthan FC, ATK (reserves), Jamshedpur FC (reserves).
Group B: Mohammedan Sporting, Bhawanipore, Indian Arrows (reserves), Hyderabad FC (reserves), Bengaluru FC (reserves), Chennaiyin FC (reserves).
Group C: ARA FC, Mumbai City FC (reserves), FC Goa (reserves), FC Bengaluru United, FC Kerala, Kerala Blasters (reserves).
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