The All India Football Federation (AIFF) on Saturday decided to approach the sports ministry to change its name to Football Federation of Bharat (FFB) after the proposal was accepted at its Special General Body Meeting in New Delhi.
AIFF President Kalyan Chaubey said the move needs ministry and FIFA approval.
Chaubey told PTI that the process has started and the proposal will first go to the sports ministry. If cleared, it will return to the general body before being sent to FIFA. He cited football bodies in Turkiye and Czechia as examples for the change.
ISL 2026-27 approved for September 4 start
The general body also approved the 2026-27 Indian Super League (ISL) start date of September 4. The AIFF annual calendar was passed, while the final ISL schedule will be decided by the managing committee. The season is expected to run for seven months with home and away matches for 14 teams.
| ISL 2026-27 start date | September 4 |
| Expected season length | Seven months |
| Participating teams | 14 |
| Managing committee | Five club reps, three AIFF officials, three commercial partners |
The AIFF again did not take a final call on the ISL structure and left it to the managing committee. Chaubey said the clubs must be part of the talks, after which the matter will go to the executive committee for ratification. The committee has five club representatives, three AIFF officials and three commercial partners.
On May 23, the AIFF had approved the adoption of the National Sports Governance Act, 2025, and its constitution will now be aligned with the law. Earlier this month, the federation also agreed in principle to a club-led model for running the ISL for two years after a meeting with sports minister Mansukh Mandaviya.
London-headquartered Genius Sports had earlier emerged as the highest bidder for the ISL commercial rights after the AIFF tender. It offered Rs 2,129 crore for the league and a cup competition over 15+5 years, with a 5% yearly rise. The AIFF was to get Rs 12.4 crore in the first year under that bid.
The clubs opposed Genius Sports as commercial rights holder and proposed taking the rights for two years instead. They offered Rs 15.4 crore per year to cover AIFF regulatory costs, including refereeing, legal, integrity and anti-doping support. They also said the AIFF’s core regulatory role would remain fully intact.