The Indian Super League successfully completed its first International Player Draft on 21st August, 2014. A total of 49 players were drafted in 8 franchise leagues during this session. The league is scheduled to run between October and December this year.
The league is primarily funded by Reliance Industries Limited (RIL), Star India and International Management Group. Designed much like the cash-rich Indian Premier League for cricket, this event is supported by the All India Football Federation (AIFF).
Indian Super League Game Play
The top 4 teams in the league will qualify for the semifinals that will be played in two legs, after which the winners will advance into the one-off finals. The player rosters need to adhere to strict rules; each team must have 1 marquee player, 7 international footballers and 14 Indian players. Out of these, 4 domestic footballers must be from the city that their franchise represents.
Kerala Blasters Recruits its Striker
Former Newcastle United striker, Michael Chopra, was among the first to be picked up by the Kerala Blasters, a team that is co-owned by Sachin Tendulkar.
Former England goalkeeper David James, marquee player and manager of the Kerala team, told the press, “When the drafts came up, the first name that caught our attention was that of Chopra.”
The striker has also played for a number of other Premier league clubs such as Sunderland and Cardiff City. In addition, he has also played for Nottingham Forest, Blackpool, Barnsley, and Ipswich. Chopra, whose father is an Indian, is the only English player in the draft.
Other Leading Recruits
Other leading names in the first season of this Indian football league include Manchester United midfielder, Bojan Djordjic; former Juventus striker, David Trezeguet, and former Arsenal winger, Freddie Ljungberg. Each of these footballers will act as the marquee player for his respective team.
32-year old Djordjic is best known as the winner of the Player of the Year award at Manchester United in 2000. However, he made only two appearances during his tenure with the club. He went on to earn a successful football career and won league titles for Red Star Belgrade in Serbia, AIK in Sweden and Videoton in Hungary.
La Liga veteran,JofreMateu, has been recruited by the Kolkata franchise that is co-owned by Sourav Ganguly and Spanish giant, Atletico Madrid. Other leading co-owners of various franchises include Bollywood stars such as Ranir Kapoor, John Abraham and Salman Khan.
Highest Paid Footballer
Chennai-based Sun Group had formerly bagged the team representing Bangalore only to opt out at the eleventh hour. This team will be replaced by a Chennai team, believed to be run by Play on Skills, an establishment that has technical collaborations with Inter Milan in India. This franchise has recruited Djordjic and former Hull City and Paris Saint Germain defender, Bernard Mendy. At $80,000, Mendy is believed to be one of the highest paid international footballers in the draft.