The business of ISL

The franchise-based tournament has been a financial nightmare since its inception. However, some smart cost-cutting might reverse the trend.

What has increased

The season: From being a little over two months in the first three seasons, it increased to four months last term and will be around six months long this time.

Squad size: In addition to the first team, franchises now must have under-13, under-15 and under-18 teams to fulfil club licensing requirements. Last term, barring ATK, MCFC and NEUFC, all teams also had a reserve side playing in the second division of the I-league. This means longer contracts for staff and players because the season has got longer. It means overall cost on players and staff has increased. Youth development: Approximately ~2 crore with investment going up to ~4 crore for some teams. AFC guideline says 10% of total investment for the season should go into youth development.

What has come down

Team salaries:

Season 1: No salary cap.

Season 2: ~22 crore including marquee’s salary.

Season 3: ~18 crore excluding marquee salary.

Season 4: ~17.5 crore, excluding marquee salary.

Team bonuses: From paying one ISL winning coach ~90 lakh as bonus, at least one franchise has started allocating bonus for the team. Bonuses now accrue to around ~ 3.5-~ 7 lakh. Moving to apartments: Barring NEUFC, Kerala Blasters and ATK, teams have moved in to apartments. That is saving teams approximately between ~1.5crore to ~4 crore. Pre-seasons: Though ATK, FC Goa, JFC and BFC went to Spain this time, teams have also started going to Thailand, Malaysia for pre-seasons saving cost on travel.