I-League 3

I-League 3
Organising body	AIFF
Founded	13 June 2023; 16 months ago
Country	India
Confederation	AFC
Number of teams	28
Level on pyramid	4
Promotion to	I-League 2
Relegation to	State leagues (provisionally)
Domestic cup(s)	Durand Cup
Current champions	Diamond Harbour (1st title)
Most championships	Diamond Harbour; Sporting Goa; (1 title each)
TV partners	SportsCast India; SportsKPI; SportVot; AIFF (YouTube)
Website	I-League.org
	Current: 2024–25

The I-League 3 is a men's professional football league in India. It forms the fourth tier of the Indian football league system, below the I-League 2 and above the State leagues.^[1]^[2]

History

For the first time, the AIFF introduced qualifiers for the I-League 2 in the 2022–23 season.^[3] On 13 June 2023, the AIFF league committee announced introducing a new league below the I-League 2, where champions of State leagues and nominated clubs will play. State FAs have to nominate a team before July 31.^[4] The AIFF wants to create a competitive pyramid with a concrete progression pathway, aimed to allow even the smallest of clubs to get promoted to the higher divisions.

Clubs

Locations of 2025–26 I-League 3 Group stage clubs

There are total 25 clubs competing in the I-League 3.

Current clubs

No.	Club	City	State	League	Position
1	Sesa FA	Sanquelim	Goa	2024–25 I-League 3 Playoffs	4th
2	Abbas Union FC	Hyderabad	Telangana	2024–25 I-League 3 Playoffs	4th
3	Dalbir FA	Patiala	Punjab	2024–25 I-League 3 Playoffs	5th
4	Downtown Heroes FC	Srinagar	Jammu and Kashmir	2024–25 I-League 3 Playoffs	5th

^ Participation via an invitation

All-time clubs

	Currently in I-League 3
	Currently in Indian Super League or I-League or I-League 2
	Currently in State leagues
	Defunct clubs

As of 2024^[update]

Pos.	Club	City	S	P	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Appearances
1	Diamond Harbour	Diamond Harbour, West Bengal	2	13	11	1	1	30	8	22	34	2023–24, 2024–25
2	KLASA	Bishnupur, Manipur	2	16	8	4	4	24	17	7	28	2023–24, 2024–25
3	Chanmari	Aizawl, Mizoram	1	9	8	0	1	22	4	18	24	2024–25
4	Kerala United	Malappuram, Kerala	2	12	5	4	3	20	14	6	19	2023–24, 2024–25
5	Sporting Goa	Panaji, Goa	1	8	5	3	1	17	3	14	17	2023–24
6	Sporting Bengaluru	Bengaluru, Karnataka	1	8	5	3	1	19	8	11	17	2023–24
7	Dempo	Panaji, Goa	1	8	5	3	1	11	2	9	17	2023–24
8	Karbi Anglong Morning Star	Diphu, Assam	1	8	5	0	3	27	11	16	15	2024–25
9	Lakecity	Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh	2	8	4	3	1	17	10	7	15	2023–24, 2024–25
10	SAT	Tirur, Kerala	1	8	4	2	2	15	12	3	14	2024–25
11	MYJ–GMSC	Mumbai, Maharashtra	1	8	4	1	3	14	8	6	13	2024–25
12	Sesa	Sanquelim, Goa	1	8	3	3	2	11	11	0	12	2024–25
13	Garhwal Heroes	New Delhi, Delhi	2	8	4	0	4	11	14	-3	12	2023–24, 2024–25
14	Sports Odisha	Cuttack, Odisha	2	8	3	2	3	10	10	0	11	2023–24, 2024–25
15	Abbas Union	Hyderabad, Telangana	2	12	3	2	7	12	18	-6	11	2023–24, 2024–25
16	Rangdajied United	Shillong, Meghalaya	1	4	2	2	0	8	2	6	8	2023–24
17	Kickstart	Bengaluru, Karnataka	1	4	2	1	1	15	4	11	7	2023–24
18	HAL	Bengaluru, Karnataka	1	4	2	1	1	9	3	6	7	2024–25
19	Bhawanipore	Kolkata, West Bengal	1	4	2	1	1	8	6	2	7	2023–24
20	Kenkre	Mumbai, Maharashtra	1	4	2	1	1	8	8	0	7	2024–25
21	Downtown Heroes	Srinagar, Jammu and Kashmir	1	8	2	1	5	13	17	-4	7	2024–25
22	Dalbir	Patiala, Punjab	1	8	2	1	5	5	15	-10	7	2024–25
23	International	Phagwara, Punjab	1	4	2	0	2	5	3	2	6	2023–24
24	Vatika	New Delhi, Delhi	1	4	2	0	2	5	7	-2	6	2023–24
25	Charutar Vidya Mandal	Vallabh Vidyanagar, Gujarat	1	4	2	0	2	5	8	-3	6	2024–25
26	United Chirang Duar	Chirang, Assam	1	4	1	2	1	5	5	0	5	2023–24
27	ARA	Ahemedabad, Gujarat	1	4	1	1	2	7	4	3	4	2023–24
28	KIYC	Imphal, Manipur	1	4	1	1	2	8	7	1	4	2023–24
29	Southern Sporting	Imphal, Manipur	1	4	1	1	2	5	5	0	4	2024–25
30	Baroda	Vadodara, Gujarat	1	4	1	0	3	3	5	-2	3	2023–24
31	Corbett	Rudrapur, Uttarakhand	1	4	1	0	3	3	7	-4	3	2024–25
32	Coramandal	Vishakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh	1	4	1	0	3	4	12	-8	3	2024–25
33	Doaba United	Jalandhar, Punjab	1	4	1	0	3	3	11	-8	3	2023–24
34	JIT	Pondicherry	1	4	1	0	3	2	11	-9	3	2023–24
35	Jaipur Elite	Jaipur, Rajasthan	2	8	0	3	5	5	15	-10	3	2023–24, 2024–25
36	RKM	Narayanpur, Chhattisgarh	2	8	1	0	7	6	25	-19	3	2023–24, 2024–25
37	Maharashtra Oranje	Mumbai, Maharashtra	1	4	0	2	2	8	10	-2	2	2024–25
38	Ghaziabad City	Ghaziabad, Uttar Pradesh	1	4	0	1	3	3	9	-6	1	2024–25
39	Bhuna	Bhuna, Haryana	1	4	0	1	3	3	20	-17	1	2024–25
40	Millat	Mumbai, Maharashtra	1	4	0	0	4	1	14	-13	0	2023–24
41	New Friends	Bade Bacheli, Chhattisgarh	1	4	0	0	4	2	26	-24	0	2023–24

Clubs relegated to I-League 3

Relegated clubs from I-League 2 to I-League 3
Season	Clubs
2023–24	Kenkre, Maharashtra Oranje
2024–25

Clubs promoted from I-League 3

Promoted clubs from I-League 3 to I-League 2
Season	Clubs
2023–24	Sporting Goa, Dempo, Sporting Bengaluru
2024–25	Diamond Harbour, Chanmari, SAT, KLASA
2025–26	Karbi Anglong Morning Star, MYJ–GMSC

Results

Source:^[5]

Season	Champions	Runners-up	No. of teams
2023–24	Sporting Goa	Dempo	25
2024–25	Diamond Harbour	Chanmari	25

References

^ "Five teams submit bids for direct Hero I-League entry". www.the-aiff.com. Archived from the original on 14 June 2023. Retrieved 13 June 2023.
^ "Record five bids for I-League; no ISL reserves in 2nd and 3rd divisions". Hindustan Times. 13 June 2023. Archived from the original on 15 June 2023. Retrieved 15 June 2023.
^ Chatterjee, Triyasha (1 May 2023). "I-League: AIFF League Committee inflict 3-TIER BIDDING structure for DIRECT entry into I-League 2023-24- Check Out". Inside Sport India. Retrieved 31 December 2023.
^ "AIFF League committee announce I-League direct entry bidders and revamped league structure for IWL". Khel Now. Archived from the original on 13 June 2023. Retrieved 15 June 2023.
^ "I-League 3 2023 — Final Standings (Play-off's)". the-aiff.com. All India Football Federation. Archived from the original on 31 December 2023. Retrieved 30 December 2023.

[1] Participation via an invitation

[2] "Five teams submit bids for direct Hero I-League entry". www.the-aiff.com. Archived from the original on 14 June 2023. Retrieved 13 June 2023.

[3] "Record five bids for I-League; no ISL reserves in 2nd and 3rd divisions". Hindustan Times. 13 June 2023. Archived from the original on 15 June 2023. Retrieved 15 June 2023.

[4] Chatterjee, Triyasha (1 May 2023). "I-League: AIFF League Committee inflict 3-TIER BIDDING structure for DIRECT entry into I-League 2023-24- Check Out". Inside Sport India. Retrieved 31 December 2023.

[5] "AIFF League committee announce I-League direct entry bidders and revamped league structure for IWL". Khel Now. Archived from the original on 13 June 2023. Retrieved 15 June 2023.

[6] "I-League 3 2023 — Final Standings (Play-off's)". the-aiff.com. All India Football Federation. Archived from the original on 31 December 2023. Retrieved 30 December 2023.

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