Sunil Chhetri and senior players make “last-ditch effort” urging FIFA to save Indian football

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The future of the Indian Super League (ISL) has been mired in uncertainty since last year, with unresolved disputes between the All India Football Federation (AIFF) and the league’s former commercial partner, Football Sports Development Limited (FSDL), pushing Indian football into a deep crisis.

With no clear resolution in sight, Indian footballers have now escalated the matter to the sport’s global governing body, FIFA, seeking its intervention.

Former India captain Sunil Chhetri, along with senior national team players Gurpreet Singh Sandhu, Sandesh Jhingan and Odisha FC’s French midfielder Hugo Boumous, have jointly appealed to FIFA to step in and help address the ongoing turmoil threatening the sport in the country.

“It’s January, and we should be on your screens as part of a competitive football game in the Indian Super League,” Gurpreet said in a video message featuring several players.

“Players, staff, owners, and the fans deserve clarity, protection, and more importantly, a future,” Chhetri said.

“Instead, here we are, driven by fear and desperation, to say aloud something which we all know,” Jhingan added.

In a collective statement, the players underlined the gravity of the situation.

“But more importantly, we are here to make a plea. The Indian football government is no longer able to fulfil its responsibilities. We are now staring at permanent paralysis. This is the last-ditch effort to save what we can. So we are calling on FIFA to step in and do what it takes to save Indian football. We hope this message gets to the powers that are in Zurich. This call is not political; it is not driven by confrontation but by necessity. It might sound like a big word, but the truth is that we are facing a humanitarian, sporting, and economic crisis. And of course, we need rescuing at the earliest. We just want to play football, please help us do it,” other players said in the statement.

Boumous echoed similar concerns, saying: “So we are calling FIFA to step in and do what it takes to save Indian football. We hope this message gets to the powers that are in Zurich.”

. @FIFAcom @FIFPRO @FIFPROAsiaOce @FPAI pic.x.com/urNqYfmVcH

— Gurpreet Singh Sandhu (@GurpreetGK) January 2, 2026

Meanwhile, the AIFF on Thursday received a letter from thirteen of the fourteen Indian Super League (ISL) clubs confirming their willingness to participate in the 2025–26 season, but only under certain conditions. The clubs have sought written guarantees from the federation on cost-sharing, removal of participation fees, and a clear long-term sustainability plan. They have also urged the AIFF to seek a one-time relaxation from the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) regarding the minimum match requirement for continental competitions.

In September, the Supreme Court of India also acknowledged the severity of the crisis, urging all stakeholders to resolve their differences and ensure the season begins on time. The court lifted the restrictions that had stalled negotiations amid uncertainty surrounding the National Sports Governance Act, 2025, and approved the adoption of a new AIFF constitution drafted by Justice L. Nageswara Rao.