2021–22 in Indian football

The 2021–22 season was the 134th competitive association football season in India.

Football in India

Season	2021–22
Men's football
Indian Super League	Shield: Jamshedpur Cup: Hyderabad
I-League	Gokulam Kerala
I-League 2nd Division	Rajasthan United
Women's football
Indian Women's League	Gokulam Kerala
← 2020–21 2022–23 →

Men's national team

India senior national football team

Main article: India national football team

2022 FIFA World Cup qualification

Main article: 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification – AFC second round § Group E

India  v  Qatar

3 June 2021 (2021-06-03)	India	0–1	Qatar	Doha, Qatar
22:30 IST		Report	Hatem 33'	Stadium: Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium Referee: Ma Ning (China)

Bangladesh  v  India

7 June 2021 (2021-06-07)	Bangladesh	0–2	India	Doha, Qatar
19:30 IST		Report	Chhetri 79', 90+2'	Stadium: Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium Referee: Zaid Thamer Mohammed (Iraq)

India  v  Afghanistan

15 June 2021 (2021-06-15)	India	1–1	Afghanistan	Doha, Qatar
19:30 IST	Azizi 75' (o.g.)	Report	Zamani 82'	Stadium: Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium Referee: Ali Reda (Lebanon)

Friendlies (2021)

Nepal    v  India

2 September 2021 (2021-09-02)	Nepal	1–1	India	Kathmandu, Nepal
17:30 UTC+5:45	Bista 36'	Report	Thapa 60'	Stadium: Dasharath Rangasala

Nepal    v  India

5 September 2021 (2021-09-05)	Nepal	1–2	India	Kathmandu, Nepal
17:30 UTC+5:45	Tamang 87'	Report	Choudhary 62' Chhetri 80'	Stadium: Dasharath Rangasala

SAFF Championship

Main article: 2021 SAFF Championship

Bangladesh  v  India

4 October 2021 (2021-10-04)	Bangladesh	1–1	India	Malé, Maldives
16:00 UTC+5:00	Arafat 74'	Report	Chhetri 26'	Stadium: National Football Stadium Referee: Majed Al-Shamrani (Saudi Arabia)

India  v  Sri Lanka

7 October 2021 (2021-10-07)	India	0–0	Sri Lanka	Malé, Maldives
16:00 UTC+5:00		Report		Stadium: National Football Stadium

Nepal    v  India

10 October 2021 (2021-10-10)	Nepal	0–1	India	Malé, Maldives
21:00 UTC+5:00		Report	Chhetri 82'	Stadium: National Football Stadium

India  v  Maldives

13 October 2021 (2021-10-13)	India	3–1	Maldives	Malé, Maldives
21:00 UTC+5:00	M. Singh 33' Chhetri 62', 71'	Report	Ashfaq 45' (pen.)	Stadium: National Football Stadium

India  v    Nepal

16 October 2021 (2021-10-16) Final	India	3–0	Nepal	Malé
20:00 UTC+5:00				Stadium: National Football Stadium

Friendlies (2022)

Bahrain  v  India

23 March 2022 (2022-03-23)	Bahrain	2–1	India	Riffa, Bahrain
19:00 UTC+3:00	Al-Hardan 37' Al-Humaidan 88'	Report	Bheke 59'	Stadium: Bahrain National Stadium Referee: Sadam Omara (Jordan)

India  v  Belarus

26 March 2022 (2022-03-26)	India	0–3	Belarus	Riffa, Bahrain
19:00 UTC+3:00		Report	Bykov 48' Solovey 68' Gromyko 90+2'	Stadium: Bahrain National Stadium Referee: Ismaeel Habib (Bahrain)

India  v ATK Mohun Bagan

11 May 2022 (2022-05-11)	India	1–2	ATK Mohun Bagan	Kolkata, India
	Chhetri	Report	Liston Kiyan	Stadium: Salt Lake Stadium

India  v I-League Stars

17 May 2022 (2022-05-17)	India	2–0	I-League Stars	Kolkata, India
		Report		Stadium: TBD

India  v  Jordan

29 May 2022 (2022-05-29)	India	0–2	Jordan	Doha, Qatar
				Stadium: TBD

Olympic team

Main article: India national under-23 football team

AFC U-23 Asian Cup qualifiers

Oman  v  India

24 October 2021 (2021-10-24) 2022 AFC U23 Q	Oman	1–2	India	Fujairah, United Arab Emirates
20:30 UTC+4	Al-Musalmi 89'	Report (AFC) Report (AIFF)	Ali 7' (pen.) V. P. Singh 38'	Stadium: Fujairah Stadium Attendance: 25 Referee: Alireza Faghani (Iran)

India  v  United Arab Emirates

27 October 2021 (2021-10-27) 2022 AFC U23 Q	India	0–1	United Arab Emirates	Fujairah, United Arab Emirates
20:30 UTC+4		Report	Idrees 82' (pen.)	Stadium: Fujairah Stadium Attendance: 100 Referee: Fu Ming (China)

India  v  Kyrgyzstan

30 October 2021 (2021-10-30) 2022 AFC U23 Q	India	0–0 (a.e.t.) (4–2 p)	Kyrgyzstan	Fujairah, United Arab Emirates
20:30 UTC+4		Report		Stadium: Fujairah Stadium Referee: Javiz Mohamed (Maldives)
	Penalties
	Praveen Danu Wangjam Rai Ali		Artykbaev Artiukov Sharshenbekov Tashiev

Women's national team

India women's national football team

Main article: India women's national football team

Friendlies (2021)

United Arab Emirates  v  India

2 October	United Arab Emirates	1–4	India	Dubai, United Arab Emirates
	Salha 50'	Report	Manisha K. 20' Xaxa 27' Sweety 41' Anju 75'	Stadium: Theyab Awana Stadium

India  v  Tunisia

4 October	India	0–1	Tunisia	Dubai, United Arab Emirates
		Report	Heuji	Stadium: TBA

Bahrain  v  India

10 October	Bahrain	0–5	India	Manama, Bahrain
		Report	Basfore 13' Xaxa 19', 68' Kathiresan 34' Manisha K. 69'	Stadium: Hamad Town Stadium

India  v  Chinese Taipei

13 October	India	1–0	Chinese Taipei	Hamad Town, Bahrain
20:30 IST	Renu 3'	Report (AIFF) Report (Soccerway)		Stadium: Hamad Town Stadium

Hammarby IF v  India

20 October	Hammarby IF	3–2	India	Stockholm, Sweden
	Jakobsson 36' Sundstrom 52' Chanu 78' (o.g.)	Report (article) Report (detailed)	Kathiresan 30' Panna 40'	Stadium: Hammarby IP

Djurgårdens IF v  India

23 October	Djurgårdens IF	1–0	India	Stockholm, Sweden
	Fanny Lång 43'	Report (article) Report (detailed)		Stadium: Stockholm Olympic Stadium

Tournament of Manaus

Main article: 2021 International Women's Football Tournament of Manaus squads

Brazil  v  India

25 November	Brazil	6–1	India	Manaus, Brazil
21:00 (UTC−04:00)	Debinha 1' Gio 37' Ary Borges 52', 81' Kerolin 54' Geyse 76'	Report	Kalyan 8'	Stadium: Arena da Amazônia Referee: Daiane Caroline Muniz dos Santos (Brazil)

India  v  Chile

28 November	India	0–3	Chile	Manaus, Brazil
17:00 (UTC−04:00)		Report	Urrutia 13' Hernández 84' Araya 85'	Stadium: Arena da Amazônia Referee: Rejane Caetano da Silva (Brazil)

Venezuela  v  India

1 December	Venezuela	2–1	India	Manaus, Brazil
17:00 (UTC−04:00)	Speckmaier 50' Olivieri 81'	Report	Dangmei 18'	Stadium: Arena da Amazônia Referee: Thayslane de Melo Costa (Brazil)

Unofficial friendlies

India  v All Stars

15 December	India	4–0	All Stars	Kochi, India
		Report		Stadium: Panampilly Nagar Ground

India  v All Stars

17 December	India	3–0	All Stars	Kochi, India
		Report		Stadium: Panampilly Nagar Ground

2022 AFC Women's Asian Cup

Main article: 2022 AFC Women's Asian Cup § Group A

India  v  Iran

20 January	India	0–0 (Voided)	Iran	Navi Mumbai, India
19:30 UTC+5:30		Report		Stadium: DY Patil Stadium Referee: Lara Lee (Australia)

Chinese Taipei  v  India

23 January	Chinese Taipei	Cancelled	India	Navi Mumbai, India
19:30 UTC+5:30		Report		Stadium: DY Patil Stadium

India  v  China

26 January	India	Cancelled	China	Mumbai, India
19:30 UTC+5:30		Report		Stadium: Mumbai Football Arena

Friendlies (2022)

India  v  Egypt

5 April	India	1–0	Egypt	Zarqa, Jordan
22:00 UTC+3	Priyangka 32'	Report		Stadium: Prince Mohammed Stadium Attendance: 100 Referee: Haneen Murad (Jordan)

Jordan  v  India

8 April	Jordan	0–1	India	Zarqa, Jordan
22:30 UTC+3		Report	Manisha 48'	Stadium: Prince Mohammed Stadium Attendance: 350 Referee: Osama Hasan (Jordan)

Women's U-20

Main article: India women's national under-20 football team

2021 SAFF U-19 Women's Championship

India  v  Sri Lanka

13 December	India	5–0	Sri Lanka	Dhaka, Bangladesh
19:00 BST (UTC+06:00)	Santosh 2' Karen 5' Linda 9', 41' Priyangka 82'			Stadium: BSSS M. Kamal Stadium Referee: Tshering Yangkhey (Bhutan)

India  v  Bhutan

15 December	India	3–0	Bhutan	Dhaka, Bangladesh
19:00 BST (UTC+06:00)	Sumati 7' Priyangka 41', 53'			Stadium: BSSS M. Kamal Stadium

Bangladesh  v  India

17 December	Bangladesh	1–0	India	Dhaka, Bangladesh
15:00 BST (UTC+06:00)		Report		Stadium: BSSS M. Kamal Stadium

Nepal    v  India

19 December	Nepal	0–1	India	Dhaka, Bangladesh
15:00 BST (UTC+06:00)			Priyangka 67'	Stadium: BSSS M. Kamal Stadium

AFC competitions

2021 AFC Cup

Main article: 2021 AFC Cup

Playoff round

South Asia Zone

Team 1	Score	Team 2
Bengaluru	1–0	Eagles

Group D

Pos	Team v t e	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification		MBSG	BSK	BFC	MAZ
1	ATK Mohun Bagan	3	2	1	0	6	2	+4	7	Inter-zone play-off semi-finals		—	1–1	2–0	—
2	Bashundhara Kings	3	1	2	0	3	1	+2	5			—	—	—	2–0
3	Bengaluru	3	1	1	1	6	4	+2	4			—	0−0	—	—
4	Maziya (H)	3	0	0	3	3	11	−8	0			1–3	—	2–6	—

Source: AFC
(H) Hosts

Inter-zone play-off semi-finals

Team 1	Score	Team 2
Nasaf	6–0	ATK Mohun Bagan

2021 AFC Women's Club Championship

Main article: 2021 AFC Women's Club Championship

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts
1	Amman (H, C)	3	2	0	1	4	3	+1	6[a]
2	Shahrdari Sirjan	3	2	0	1	4	3	+1	6[a]
3	Gokulam Kerala	3	1	0	2	4	4	0	3
4	Bunyodkor	3	1	0	2	3	5	−2	3

Source: AFC
Rules for classification: Group stage tiebreakers
(C) Champions; (H) Hosts
Notes:

1. Head-to-head points: Amman 3, Shahrdari Sirjan 0.

2022 AFC Champions League

Main article: 2022 AFC Champions League

Pos	Team v t e	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification		SHB	MUM	QWJ	AJZ
1	Al-Shabab (H)	6	5	1	0	18	1	+17	16	Advance to Round of 16		—	6–0	3–0	3–0
2	Mumbai City	6	2	1	3	3	11	−8	7[a]			0–3	—	1–0	0–0
3	Al-Quwa Al-Jawiya	6	2	1	3	7	10	−3	7[a]			1–1	1–2	—	3–2
4	Al-Jazira	6	1	1	4	4	10	−6	4			0–2	1–0	1–2	—

Source: AFC
(H) Hosts
Notes:

1. Head-to-head points: Mumbai City 6, Al-Quwa Al-Jawiya 0.

2022 AFC Cup

Main article: 2022 AFC Cup

Preliminary round 2

South Asia Zone

Team 1	Score	Team 2
ATK Mohun Bagan	5–0	Blue Star

Play-off round

South Asia Zone

Team 1	Score	Team 2
ATK Mohun Bagan	3–1	Abahani Limited Dhaka

Group D

Pos	Team v t e	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification		MBSG	BSK	MAZ	GOK
1	ATK Mohun Bagan (H)	3	2	0	1	11	6	+5	6[a]	Inter-zone play-off semi-finals		—	4–0	—	—
2	Bashundhara Kings	3	2	0	1	3	5	−2	6[a]			—	—	1–0	—
3	Maziya	3	1	0	2	3	6	−3	3[b]			2–5	—	—	1–0
4	Gokulam Kerala	3	1	0	2	5	5	0	3[b]			4–2	1–2	—	—

Source: AFC
(H) Hosts
Notes:

1. Head-to-head points: ATK Mohun Bagan 3, Bashundhara Kings 0.
2. Head-to-head points: Maziya 3, Gokulam Kerala 0.

2022 AFC Futsal Club Championship

Main article: 2022 AFC Futsal Club Championship

Club competitions

Indian Super League

Main article: 2021–22 Indian Super League

Regular season

Pos	Team v t e	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Jamshedpur (L)	20	13	4	3	42	21	+21	43	Qualification to ISL playoffs and Playoffs for 2023–24 AFC Champions League group stage
2	Hyderabad[a] (C)	20	11	5	4	43	23	+20	38	Qualification to ISL playoffs and Playoffs for 2023–24 AFC Cup qualifying playoffs
3	ATK Mohun Bagan	20	10	7	3	37	26	+11	37	Qualification to ISL playoffs
4	Kerala Blasters	20	9	7	4	34	24	+10	34
5	Mumbai City	20	9	4	7	36	31	+5	31
6	Bengaluru	20	8	5	7	32	27	+5	29
7	Odisha	20	6	5	9	31	43	−12	23
8	Chennaiyin	20	5	5	10	17	35	−18	20
9	Goa	20	4	7	9	29	35	−6	19
10	NorthEast United	20	3	5	12	25	43	−18	14
11	East Bengal	20	1	8	11	18	36	−18	11

Source: Indian Super League
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) head-to-head points; 3) head-to-head goal difference; 4) head-to-head goals scored; 5) goal difference; 6) number of goals scored; 7) fair play ranking; 8) drawing of lots
(C) ISL Cup winners; (L) League Winners' Shield Winners
Notes:

1. Hyderabad qualified for Playoffs for 2023–24 AFC Cup qualifying playoffs by winning the ISL playoffs

Playoffs

Main article: 2022 Indian Super League playoffs

	Semi-finals							Final
	1	Jamshedpur	0	1	1
	4	Kerala Blasters	1	1	2
								4	Kerala Blasters	1 (1)
								2	Hyderabad (p)	1 (3)
	2	Hyderabad	3	0	3
	3	ATK Mohun Bagan	1	1	2

I-League

Main article: 2021-22 I-League

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification[a]
1	Gokulam Kerala (C)	18	13	4	1	44	15	+29	43	Champions and qualification for the play–offs for 2023–24 AFC Cup group stage spot
2	Mohammedan	18	11	4	3	34	18	+16	37
3	Churchill Brothers	18	9	4	5	24	22	+2	31
4	Sreenidi Deccan	18	8	6	4	27	19	+8	30
5	RoundGlass Punjab	18	8	4	6	33	29	+4	28
6	Rajasthan United	18	5	7	6	16	16	0	22
7	NEROCA	18	4	8	6	21	30	−9	20
8	Aizawl	17	7	0	10	23	26	−3	21
9	TRAU	17	4	6	7	15	17	−2	18
10	Indian Arrows	17	4	5	8	10	23	−13	17
11	Sudeva Delhi	17	4	5	8	13	23	−10	17
12	Real Kashmir	17	2	8	7	23	31	−8	14
13	Kenkre (R)	17	3	3	11	11	25	−14	12	Relegation to 2022–23 I-League 2nd Division

Source: Hero I-League
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) head-to-head points; 3) head-to-head goal difference; 4) goal difference; 5) number of goals scored; 6) drawing of lots
(C) Champions; (R) Relegated
Notes:

1. Teams were split into two groups, Championship Stage (Group A) and Relegation Stage (Group B) after each team had played 12 matches.

Durand Cup

Main article: 2022 Durand Cup

	Quarterfinals				Semifinals				Final
	Mohammedan	1
	Gokulam Kerala	0
					Mohammedan (a.e.t.)	4
					Bengaluru United	2
	Army Red	-
	Bengaluru United (w.o.)	-
									Mohammedan	0
									Goa (a.e.t.)	1
	Goa	5
	Delhi	1
					Goa (p)	2(7)
					Bengaluru	2(6)
	Bengaluru	3
	Army Green	2

State football leagues

Main article: 2021–22 season in state football leagues of India

The following clubs were confirmed by their state football associations for the 2022–23 season of I-League 2.

No.	State	Qualifying tournament		Selected	City	Position
		Name	Season
1	Chhattisgarh	Chhattisgarh State Men's Football League Championship	2021–22	RKM FA	Narainpur	Champions
2	Delhi	Delhi Football League	2021–22	Delhi FC	New Delhi	Champions
3	Goa	Goa Professional League	2021–22	Dempo SC	Panjim	Champions[1]
4	Gujarat	Gujarat SFA Club Championship	2021–22	ARA FC	Ahmedabad	Runners-up
5	Himachal Pradesh	Himachal Football League	2022	Techtro Swades United FC	Una	Champions
6	Karnataka	Bangalore Football League	2021–22	FC Bengaluru United	Bengaluru	Champions
7	Kerala	Kerala Premier League	2021–22	Golden Threads FC	Kochi	Champions
8	Madhya Pradesh	Madhya Pradesh Premier League	2021–22	The Diamond Rock FC	Balaghat	3rd place
9	Maharashtra	Mumbai Football League	2021–22	Ambernath United Atlanta FC	Ambernath	Champions
10	Punjab	Punjab State Super Football League	2021–22	Jagat Singh Palahi FC	Phagwara	3rd place
11	West Bengal	Calcutta Football League	2021–22	United SC	Kolkata	Semi-finalist

The following clubs were not allowed to participate by the state football associations for the 2022–23 season of I-League 2.

No.	State	Qualifying tournament		Selected	City	Position
		Name	Season
1	Manipur	Manipur State League	2021–22	KLASA FC	Bishnupur	Champions

Reliance Foundation Development League

Main article: 2022 Reliance Foundation Development League

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Bengaluru (Q)	5	5	0	0	14	2	+12	15	Advance to Next Gen Cup
2	Kerala Blasters	5	4	0	1	7	3	+4	12
3	Jamshedpur	5	2	1	2	10	6	+4	7
4	Hyderabad	5	2	1	2	10	7	+3	7
5	Young Champs	5	2	1	2	4	4	0	7
6	Goa	5	2	1	2	8	10	−2	7
7	Chennaiyin	5	0	2	3	2	7	−5	2
8	Mumbai City	5	0	0	5	0	16	−16	0

Updated to match(es) played on unknown. Source:
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) head-to-head points; 3) head-to-head goal difference; 4) goal difference; 5) number of goals scored; 6) play-off match
(Q) Qualified for the phase indicated

Indian Women's League

Main article: 2021–22 Indian Women's League season

Qualification

The following four teams from four states played each other once during April in the qualifying round at the Ambedkar Stadium in New Delhi.^[2]

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	ARA Women (Q)	3	3	0	0	27	3	+24	9	Qualification for the final round
2	Young Welfare Club	3	2	0	1	9	4	+5	6
3	Guwahati City FC	3	0	1	2	0	14	−14	1
4	Golazo FC	3	0	1	2	0	15	−15	1

Source: AIFF
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) head-to-head points; 3) head-to-head goal difference; 4) goal difference; 5) number of goals scored; 6) drawing of lots
(Q) Qualified for the phase indicated

Main round

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Gokulam Kerala Women	5	5	0	0	37	1	+36	15	Champions and Qualification for the 2022 AFC Women's Club Championship
2	Sethu	5	5	0	0	19	2	+17	15
3	Kickstart Women	5	4	0	1	14	3	+11	12
4	Sports Odisha	5	3	1	1	15	3	+12	10
5	Indian Arrows Women	5	3	1	1	10	3	+7	10
6	SSB Women	5	3	0	2	16	9	+7	9
7	ARA Women	5	2	0	3	9	10	−1	6
8	PIFA Sports	5	1	1	3	8	12	−4	4
9	Mata Rukmani Girls	5	1	0	4	5	24	−19	3
10	Odisha Police	5	1	0	4	2	21	−19	3
11	Sirvodem Sporting	5	0	1	4	1	25	−24	1
12	Hans Women	5	0	0	5	4	27	−23	0

Updated to match(es) played on 1 May 2022. Source: AIFF
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) head-to-head points; 3) head-to-head goal difference; 4) goal difference; 5) number of goals scored; 6) drawing of lots

AIFF Futsal Club Championship

Main article: 2021 Futsal Club Championship

Knock-out stage

• Bracket

	Semi-finals				Final
	Mohammedan SC (Kolkata)	2
	Bengaluru FC	0
					Mohammedan SC (Kolkata)	2
					Delhi FC	7
	Delhi FC	12
	Mangala Club	7

New clubs

Club	Formation	Location	League	Tier
SC Bengaluru[3]	4 April 2022	Bengaluru, Karnataka	Bangalore Super Division	4th