Santosh trophy final round

AIFF Acting Secretary General Satyanarayan: The 2023-24 I-League 2, featuring eight teams, is set to begin on January 20 and will be played on a home-and-away basis in a double round-robin format. The top two teams at the end of the league will be promoted to the 2024-25 I-League and the bottom two will be relegated to the 2024-25 I-League 3.

The eight teams include two clubs relegated from the 2022-23 I-League -- Mumbai Kenkre FC and Sudeva Delhi FC, three teams included from the 2022-23 I-League 2 Final Round -- FC Bengaluru United, United SC and The Oranje FC, formerly known as Ambernath United Atlanta FC, and three teams qualified from the 2024-25 I-League 3 --Sporting Clube de Goa, Dempo SC and Sporting Club Bengaluru.

Sporting Clube de Goa, who became the inaugural champions of the I-League 3 after finishing atop the Playoffs at the end of last year, are back on the national stage after a gap of seven years. They were joined by five-time I-League/NFL champions Dempo SC and Sporting Club Bengaluru, who finished second and third, respectively.