Indian Super League 2020-21: All that you need to know
The seventh edition of the Indian Super League (ISL) is all set to start from November 20 onwards. Defending champions ATK, whose merger with Mohun Bagan led to them being ATK Mohun Bagan, will open the proceedings against Kerala Blasters. Besides Bagan, East Bengal have also entered the tournament this season to spice things up. Here's everything that you need to know.
The seventh edition will have 11 teams battling it out for the coveted prize. The teams that will take part this season are ATK Mohun Bagan, Bengaluru FC, Chennaiyin FC, FC Goa, Hyderabad FC, Jamshedpur FC, Kerala Blasters, Mumbai City FC, NorthEast United FC, Odisha FC and SC East Bengal.
The ongoing coronavirus pandemic has forced the organizers hold all matches behind closed doors. The tournament will be played in Goa. Notably, there is a bio-secure bubble in place. Games will be played across three venues: Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, Fatorda; GMC Athletic Stadium, Bambolim; and Tilak Maidan Stadium, Vasco.
This season will see a total of 115 matches, 20 more than last season. All clubs will play each other in a 'home' and 'away' round-robin format and the top four teams will qualify for the playoffs. Meanwhile, the winner of the league table will book their spot in next year's AFC Champions League.
The matches will be shown live on the Star Sports Network and Asianet Plus. The games will be streamed online on Hotstar and Jio TV. Timing: 7:30 PM IST. The organizers have released the first 11 rounds of fixtures, till January 11, 2021 and it will feature six double-headers which will be played on Sundays. The remaining fixtures will be released in December.
Like several European football domestic leagues, the ISL 2020-21 edition will see teams using five substitutes rather than three. Teams can make five substitutions in at most three intervals.
