AIFF seals commercial deal with Shrachi Sports, Sony Sports to broadcast I-League matches

New Delhi: The All India Football Federation (AIFF) signed a commercial rights agreement for its premier competitions, including the I-League and IWL, with Shrachi Sports Endeavour for producing and broadcasting 338 matches in the 2024-25 season.

The other events include I-League 2, the Senior National Championship for the Santosh Trophy and the Senior Women's National Championship for the Rajmata Jijabai Trophy.

These senior men's and women's club leagues and national championship matches will be streamed on the SSEN app, and 110 of the 132 I-League matches will be broadcast live on Sony Sports Network.

The development comes days after the I-League's 18th edition kicked off as scheduled on November 23, following a last-minute resolution to a broadcast impasse that had sparked a revolt by the participating clubs.

"This significant partnership will help Indian football to get necessary exposure," said AIFF Secretary General Anilkumar Prabhakaran in a statement.

Rahul Todi, managing director at Shrachi Sports, said, "It is indeed a historic day for Shrachi Sports to be partnering with AIFF. This will provide a platform for men and women players to showcase their talents to national and international audiences with high-quality HD content.

"With this partnership, Shrachi shows its commitment towards being part of India's growing sports ecosystem." Budging to the demands of the 12 clubs just a few hours before the league's kickoff, the AIFF had said that Sony Network would broadcast the league from the second round.

However, a day before that, under the banner of the I-League Clubs Association, the 12 clubs shot off a letter to the AIFF president, Kalyan Chaubey, warning that they would not commence the tournament until Sony Network was confirmed as the official broadcaster of the league.