New Delhi: To honour I-League’s scheduled kick-off on Friday, the All India Football Federation has set a Wednesday deadline to Shrachi Sports for finalisation of broadcaster after awarding them commercial rights of premier domestic competitions for the 2024-25 season.
Since the Kolkata-based company was the only bidder, the AIFF’s executive committee approved its bid in a meeting on Monday, after initially having reservations about it, which were allayed by secretary Anilkumar Prabhakaran.
And as not much time is left before Sreenidhi Deccan host Gokulam Kerala in the tournament opener, the AIFF wants Shrachi to provide “commitment letters” from interested broadcasters by November 20 (Wednesday).
The federation had invited request for proposals on October 23 for commercial rights of the I-League, I-League 2, Indian Women’s League and final rounds of the Santosh Trophy and senior women’s national championship, receiving Shrachi’s bid on October 8.
The countdown begins! ⏳
I-League 2024-25 fixtures are out, and it’s time to gear up for non-stop football action! 💥
For more details⬇️https://t.co/n8qlBmMzr1#IndianFootball ⚽️ pic.twitter.com/aX624WHCQ8
— I-League (@ILeague_aiff) October 24, 2024
“It is hereby informed that your proposal dated 8 November 2024, received in response to the Request for Proposal for Commercial Rights published by the All India Football Federation (AIFF) dated 23 October, 2024 has been accepted, and approved by the Executive Committee of AIFF during a meeting held on 18 November, 2024,” AIFF’s secretary Anilkumar wrote in a letter to Shrachi Sports.
“In this regard, we kindly request you to initiate discussions with broadcasting partners and provide us with the commitment letters from such broadcasters not later than on 20 November 2024, to ensure smooth execution of the broadcasting arrangements relating to the first competition commencing under the RFP – the I League, set to commence on 22 November, 2024.
“Please note that we are committed to honouring the fixtures and the date of the opening match of the competitions forming a part of the RFP. The I League forms the first part of the Competitions covered under the RFP.”
A Shrachi official informed News9 Sports that they plan to live stream matches through its recently launched OTT platform SSEN and are in talks to rope in the public-funded DD Sports as broadcaster.
Logjam over broadcast
I-League clubs have earlier voiced feeling betrayed by the AIFF, threatening to boycott the competition if a deal with Sony Network doesn’t materialise as promised, in spite of offering to fund 50 per cent of match costs.
Under the aegis of I-League Clubs Association, 12 clubs said they wouldn’t turn up if the AIFF fail to rope in Sony, who had offered to show matches free of cost on condition of premium production quality.
The AIFF could yet write to clubs for confirmation of commitment to bear 50 per cent of production costs in efforts to bring in Sony, though a fresh bottleneck could arise over selection of the live streaming platform.
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