AIFF receives a blow again as SC Bengaluru moves to CAS
SC Bengaluru club has moved to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) for relief from relegation from the I-League, placing it in the same realm of uncertainty that the Indian Super League finds itself in, albeit for different reasons. On Tuesday, the appeal committee gave a further two weeks to clubs for filing written replies and set the next date of hearing on 23rd September, effectively stopping the entire relegation process in the I-League, adding to the All India Football Federation’s woes. It prompted SCB to drag the AIFF to the top-most court in sporting cases over procedural delay in deciding on relegation, according to reports from News9 Sports. As per the league table, Delhi FC is the other team to be relegated along with SCB, after finishing in the bottom two places of the 2024-25 I-League, following which the AIFF’s appeal committee issued a stay-order on their drop on 27th May. SCB has sought relief at the Swiss court for this inordinate delay, making it the third time that AIFF was taken to Lausanne for last season’s I-League. On 18th July, CAS had decided on the second division’s championship too, judging Inter Kashi as the I-League winner over Churchill Brothers, and would now determine which teams would be relegated to the second division. Not only did the federation lose both the cases against Kashi, but they were fined heavily too, putting considerable stress on its stretched coffers. Despite repeated reminders, the AIFF is yet to hand over the I-League trophy and the prize money to Inter Kashi. “Yes, they have gone to CAS. They are a club that got relegated and are trying to stay back in the I-League. They feel they have a case, so let’s see what CAS decides. As the matter is sub-judice, it won’t be wise to say anything more,” an AIFF official said. SCB (21 points in 22 matches) has demanded three points as per tournament rules against Namdhari FC for fielding an ‘ineligible’ player against them, and should CAS endorse their claim, Aizawl FC (23 points) would go down. Though the ISL has been put on an indefinite hold due to a contractual logjam and depends on the Supreme Court directive for a way forward, no information has been forthcoming on when the I-League would start. Clubs remain idle on the transfer market, which closes on August 31, and amidst the prevailing air of uncertainty in Indian football, none is willing to make any commitment for the I-League that usually runs from October to March. For the third time in the last two weeks, the league committee would meet on Wednesday to decide on Sudeva Delhi FC’s request to be reinstated in I-League 2 despite failing to comply with the disciplinary committee’s registration ban.
SC Bengaluru’s appeal dismissed by AIFF; Still granted ‘interim relief’ from Appeal Committee!
Debutant in the elite I-League 2024-25, SC Bengaluru received a blow in their effort to avoid relegation from the League as the All India Football Federation (AIFF)’s appeals committee dismissed Bengaluru’s appeal for three points based on their complaint against Namdhari FC. SC Bengaluru finished 11th on the League table and are now staring at relegation alongside Delhi FC. The matter pertains to the case involving Namdhari FC player Cledson Da Silva, also known as De, who was used as an ineligible player during Namdhari’s 2-1 win over SC Bengaluru on March 30th of this year. SC Bengaluru had lodged an official complaint to the AIFF, where they alleged that Namdhari had played De in the game, even though the Brazilian ought to have been serving out a suspension. They pointed at the Namdhari player picking up seven yellow cards of the 2024-25 campaign before Namdhari’s 3-1 win over Gokulam Kerala on 17th March, with De also getting sent off against the Malabarians. Hence, SC Bengaluru claimed that De should’ve been serving a two-match suspension for the accumulated red card and yellow cards and should have been suspended for the game against them. However, the AIFF appeal committee has now come up with its verdict on the matter and dismissed SC Bengaluru’s complaint, giving Namdhari FC all three points for their win. In their verdict, the AIFF claims that Namdhari acted in ‘good faith’ and had also emailed the AIFF competitions department to verify the opportunity to play De against SC Bengaluru before the game. In their statement on the matter, the AIFF appeals committee stated, “The abovementioned facts establish that the club acted in good faith and served the suspensions by the regulations. However, the defendant club is warned that henceforth, the club is advised to exercise precautions by itself while fielding a player, and this decision shall not be taken as a precedent in any of the future cases.” It also claimed that the reason De was not in the squad for Namdhari’s final game of the I-League campaign against Aizawl FC and was the committee’s decision to uphold the red card that the Brazilian picked up against Gokulam Kerala. However, the AIFF Appeal Committee has still granted ‘interim relief’ from the relegation to both SC Bengaluru and Delhi FC after the Delhi-based club argued that key provisions under the AIFF Disciplinary Code and constitutional protections were ignored. The Appeals Committee acknowledged the club’s right to contest the decision and raised concerns over the lack of precedent and due process, especially given AIFF’s history of waiving relegation under special circumstances. The matter is set for further hearing, giving both clubs a fighting chance to retain their place in the I-League.
SC Bengaluru might move to CAS also if deprived of justice finally!
Sudeep Pakrashi: Sporting Club Bengaluru might also move to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), like Inter Kashi, if the team are ultimately relegated from the 2024-25 I-League. The Appeal Committee of the All India Football Federation has issued a stay order on the announcement of relegation for SC Bengaluru and Delhi FC from the I-League on Wednesday. Kishore S. Reddy, co-founder of the team revealed while speaking to Parallel Sports, “This is a different issue from the other complaints lodged to the AIFF disciplinary committee. Namdhari FC played an ‘illegal’ footballer in their match against us and the I-League rule-book clearly says that we deserve three points from the match.” SC Bengaluru finished with 21 points from 22 matches in the League 2024-25. With three points from the match against Namdhari FC, the team will come out of the relegation with 24 points while Aizawl FC which finished with 23 points will be relegated. Kishore is also surprised by the decision of the AIFF Disciplinary Committee regarding the issue. “We appealed to the Disciplinary Committee first and there, the committee in its decision only cautioned Namdhari FC to restrain them from doing a similar act of fielding an ‘illegal’ footballer in the future! How can a Disciplinary Committee take such a decision of cautioning only instead of following the I-League rule book?” Kishore sounded disappointed also about the AIFF’s lackluster attitude saying, “The clubs like us who are coming to Indian football with passion and formidable investments will think twice before joining Indian football in the future.”
