# 2025–26 I-League 2
The 2025–26 I-League 2 was the season of I-League 2, the third tier of the Indian men's football league system, organized by the [All India Football Federation](https://www.edgepedia.org/all-india-football-federation) (AIFF). Nine clubs played a home-and-away, single round-robin format from March 27 to May 15, 2026, with the champions and runners-up promoted to the Indian Football League (IFL), the second tier formerly known as the I-League.[1](https://indianfootballleague.in/i-league-2-2025-26-to-begin-on-march-27/)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Tier | Third tier of Indian men's football, below the Indian Football League (formerly I-League)[1](https://indianfootballleague.in/i-league-2-2025-26-to-begin-on-march-27/) |
| Dates | Fixtures announced March 17, 2026; season ran March 27 to May 15, 2026[1](https://indianfootballleague.in/i-league-2-2025-26-to-begin-on-march-27/) |
| Format | Nine clubs, single round robin, each team playing four home and four away matches[1](https://indianfootballleague.in/i-league-2-2025-26-to-begin-on-march-27/) |
| Promotion | Champions and runners-up promoted to the Indian Football League 2026-27[1](https://indianfootballleague.in/i-league-2-2025-26-to-begin-on-march-27/) |
| Relegation | Ninth-placed club, together with Sports Academy Tirur, which withdrew before the season began, relegated to I-League 3 2026-27[1](https://indianfootballleague.in/i-league-2-2025-26-to-begin-on-march-27/) |
| Entry routes | Two clubs relegated from I-League 2024-25, two promoted from I-League 3 2024-25, four retained from I-League 2 2024-25, and one reinstated club[1](https://indianfootballleague.in/i-league-2-2025-26-to-begin-on-march-27/) |
## Place in the pyramid
I-League 2 sits below the Indian Football League, which the AIFF renamed from the I-League and runs as the second tier of men's professional football in India.[2](https://www.the-aiff.com/index.php/article/indian-football-league-to-begin-on-february-27) The IFL's league toppers at the end of its 2025-26 season are promoted to the [Indian Super League](https://www.edgepedia.org/indian-super-league) 2026-27, so I-League 2 feeds the promotion chain that now connects the second and first tiers.[2](https://www.the-aiff.com/index.php/article/indian-football-league-to-begin-on-february-27) Below I-League 2 sits I-League 3, which supplies promoted clubs and receives the relegated ones.[1](https://indianfootballleague.in/i-league-2-2025-26-to-begin-on-march-27/)
The AIFF's published competitions calendar for 2025-26 had originally listed I-League 2 for February 1 to April 30, 2026.[3](https://www.the-aiff.com/media/uploads/2025/06/AIFF-Competitions-Calendar-2025.pdf) The season in fact began on March 27, 2026, after the fixtures were announced on March 17, and concluded on May 15, 2026.[1](https://indianfootballleague.in/i-league-2-2025-26-to-begin-on-march-27/)
## Participating clubs
The nine participating teams were assembled from four routes:[1](https://indianfootballleague.in/i-league-2-2025-26-to-begin-on-march-27/)
- **Relegated from I-League 2024-25**: Delhi FC and Sporting Club Bengaluru.
- **Promoted from I-League 3 2024-25**: GMSC and Karbi Anglong Morning Star FC.
- **Retained from I-League 2 2024-25**: United SC, NEROCA FC, Sporting Clube de Goa, and FC Bengaluru United.
- **Reinstated**: Sudeva Delhi FC, restored to I-League 2 by decision of the AIFF Executive Committee.
TRAU FC and KLASA FC had left the division at the end of the previous season, relegated from I-League 2 2024-25 after finishing eighth and ninth respectively.[1](https://indianfootballleague.in/i-league-2-2025-26-to-begin-on-march-27/) Sports Academy Tirur withdrew from the 2025-26 competition before it commenced, reducing the field and later counting among the clubs dropping to I-League 3.[1](https://indianfootballleague.in/i-league-2-2025-26-to-begin-on-march-27/)
## Season format and opening
Each of the nine clubs played every opponent once, four matches at home and four away, for a total of eight matches per club.[1](https://indianfootballleague.in/i-league-2-2025-26-to-begin-on-march-27/) The season opened on March 27, 2026 with two matches: Karbi Anglong Morning Star FC against Sudeva Delhi FC at the KASA Stadium in Diphu, and GMSC against Sporting Club Bengaluru at the Cooperage Stadium in Mumbai.[1](https://indianfootballleague.in/i-league-2-2025-26-to-begin-on-march-27/) Both opening matches ended in draws, 0-0 in Diphu and 3-3 in Mumbai.[4](https://www.soccerpunter.com/results/27392/India-I-League-2nd-Division-2025-2026)
## Promotion and relegation outcomes
The champions and runners-up earned promotion to the Indian Football League 2026-27.[1](https://indianfootballleague.in/i-league-2-2025-26-to-begin-on-march-27/) At the other end, the ninth-placed club joined the withdrawn Sports Academy Tirur in relegation to I-League 3 2026-27.[1](https://indianfootballleague.in/i-league-2-2025-26-to-begin-on-march-27/)
The final round of matches was played on May 15, 2026, with Sporting Goa losing 1-2 to SC Bengaluru, MYJ-GMSC drawing 1-1 with Bengaluru United, and United drawing 1-1 with Delhi FC.[4](https://www.soccerpunter.com/results/27392/India-I-League-2nd-Division-2025-2026) Delhi FC finished the campaign unbeaten in its closing stretch, including a 5-1 win over SC Bengaluru on May 9 and a 6-1 win over MYJ-GMSC on April 26.[4](https://www.soccerpunter.com/results/27392/India-I-League-2nd-Division-2025-2026)
## Context
The 2025-26 season ran during a period of restructuring in Indian football. The AIFF's Vision 2047 roadmap set a target of a five-level men's pyramid, with 12 I-League 2 teams below 14 I-League teams and 14 ISL teams.[5](https://www.espn.com.au/football/story/_/id/37635352/aiff-roadmap-decoding-vision-decide-fate-indian-football-future) The second tier itself was rebranded as the Indian Football League for 2025-26 and played in two stages, with places 1 to 5 after Stage 1 advancing to a home-and-away championship round and places 6 to 10 competing in a centralized relegation round.[2](https://www.the-aiff.com/index.php/article/indian-football-league-to-begin-on-february-27) • [6](https://www.the-aiff.com/media/uploads/2026/02/IndianFootballLeague.EOIBroadcast.24022026.pdf) The AIFF also invited expressions of interest from over-the-top streaming platforms for streaming rights to the second tier's 2025-2026 season.[6](https://www.the-aiff.com/media/uploads/2026/02/IndianFootballLeague.EOIBroadcast.24022026.pdf)
## References
1. [I-League 2 2025-26 to begin on March 27, AIFF Media Team via indianfootballleague.in](https://indianfootballleague.in/i-league-2-2025-26-to-begin-on-march-27/)
2. [Indian Football League to begin on February 27, the-aiff.com](https://www.the-aiff.com/index.php/article/indian-football-league-to-begin-on-february-27)
3. [AIFF Competitions Calendar 2025-26](https://www.the-aiff.com/media/uploads/2025/06/AIFF-Competitions-Calendar-2025.pdf)
4. [India I-League 2nd Division 2025/2026 Fixtures and Past Results, SoccerPunter](https://www.soccerpunter.com/results/27392/India-I-League-2nd-Division-2025-2026)
5. [AIFF Roadmap: Decoding the vision that will decide the fate of Indian football, ESPN](https://www.espn.com.au/football/story/_/id/37635352/aiff-roadmap-decoding-vision-decide-fate-indian-football-future)
6. [Invitation for Expression of Interest for the Streaming of the Indian Football League 2025-2026 Season, the-aiff.com](https://www.the-aiff.com/media/uploads/2026/02/IndianFootballLeague.EOIBroadcast.24022026.pdf)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Sports, games, and recreation › Association football › Football competitions and records › Seasons and editions › Domestic league season editions › Asian and Oceanian league seasons*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 21, 2026 · Edited: Oct 11, 2026; Oct 15, 2026; Oct 21, 2026 · Last review: Oct 21, 2026*
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