JOIN USI-League clubs on Tuesday declared war on the All India Football Federation (AIFF) by refusing to sign the mandatory Asian Football Confederation (AFC) licensing criteria unless their demands were addressed by AIFF.
All the I-League clubs, except Pailan Arrows and HASC, met AIFF and its marketing partner IMG-Reliance and demanded that the licensing criteria should only be implemented when the federation follows the AFC guideline of having the I-League as a separate entity.
“We made few demands and have refused to sign the AFC licensing criteria until our problems are addressed by the AIFF. We want the I-League to be a separate entity as per AFC guideline and also want clubs to be a stake holder in the I-League body. We have also demanded a share of revenue,” Pune FC’s Chirag Tanna said.
Mohun Bagan official Debashish Dutta said that since clubs spent a huge amount of money every year to raise teams they should also be a stake-holders in the I-League body.