Ambernath United Atlanta FC vs FC Bengaluru United at the Cooperage Stadium in Mumbai on Thursday, 11th May 2023. The final round of Hero I-League 2 is well and truly underway and this will just be the second matchday of the total five.

MatchDay 1: Results of the two fixtures on 6th May 2023

Shillong Lajong beat United SC by 2-1

FC Bengaluru United beat Delhi FC by 1-0.

FC Bengaluru United won their opening match of the final round of Hero I-League 2 defeating Delhi FC by 1-0. A 76th minute strike from Irfan Yadwad got the Bengaluru side all three points. They now head to Mumbai for their first away game.

On the other hand, the home side Ambernath United Atlanta FC will look to kick-start their final round debut with a bang. FC Bengaluru United will prove to be a stern test for AUA FC but the home crowd and home ground have proved to be the 12th man for Steven Dias' side.

Let us take a look at the form of both sides in their last five matches

Ambernath United Atlanta FC: WWWWL

The only loss in the five match was the away game against Dempo SC. Followed by two home wins against FC Goa Reserves and Dempo SC. The two away matches against Hyderabad Reserves and ARA FC completed their stunning run in the group stages and helped them qualify for the final round as Group winners.

FC Bengaluru United: WWWWD

FC Bengaluru United won their opening match of the final round. They were also brilliant at the closing stages of the group stage winning three and drawing one of their last four group games.

AUAFC squad for Ambernath United Atlanta FC vs FC Bengaluru United: Himanshu Patil (C), Allan Dias, Arif Shaikh, Manoj Gupta, Ashley Koli, Johnson Matthews, Abhijit Tawhare, Shravan Shetty, Aaron D'Costa, Umesh Peramba ,Mandeep Singh Multani, Rahul Murali, Kaustubh Ravindra, Nishant Shetty, Nitesh Monde, Tejas Raut, Bipin Rawat, Bersal Viegas, Vishnu Menon, Yasheel Shah

The match is scheduled to kick-off at 4.30pm at the Cooperage stadium in Colaba, Mumbai. Can Ambernath United Atlanta FC make a winning start to their final round matches?

As far as local sporting rivalries go, few on this planet can compare to the one between East Bengal vs Mohun Bagan, commonly known as the Kolkata Derby. 

The two giants hailing from the same city, Kolkata, have been at each other's throats since East Bengal's inception a century and some change ago on August 1st, 1920, and their rivalry has scripted the most glorious chapter in the history of Indian football.

The two teams are not just two football entities but represent two sets of inhabitants of the state of Bengal, who simply cannot stand losing to the other side.  East Bengal vs Mohun Bagan evokes passion unlike any other sporting contest in the country. So ahead of the new season's Kolkata Derby, we take a brief look at the rich history of the rivalry.

Though the data is just an approximation, as of 27th July 2025, it is believed that the tally of overall meetings stands at 403 matches up till now, (including friendlies), where East Bengal have been triumphant 139 times, while Mohun Bagan 135 times. 129 matches have been drawn.

Read Also | Most Iconic Rivalries in European Football Leagues: History & Stats

East Bengal vs Mohun Bagan: Head-to-Head

Since 2020-21, these two teams have played 10 times against each other in ISL, while Mohun Bagan Super Giants have won 9 matches, with only one draw between the two. Mohun Bagan Super Giant is a merger of Mohun Bagan AC and ATK FC.

Mohun Bagan's domination over East Bengal in ISL comes while the two teams enjoy fairly competitive records against each other in other tournaments. In 45 matches of the I-League, East Bengal have won 17 so far and Mohun Bagan 15, while 13 ended in a draw.

In 22 Federation Cup matches, East Bengal have won eight and Mohun Bagan six, while eight matches ended in a draw. In 12 Rovers Cup matches, both teams have won four each, while four matches ended in a draw.

In 163 Calcutta Football League matches, East Bengal won 56, Mohun Bagan 48 and 59 ended in a draw. East Bengal enjoy a massive record against their archrivals in the IFA Shield. Out of 41 matches, they have won 21, while Mohun Bagan has managed to win only seven of those.

East Bengal vs Mohun Bagan overall record

The All India Football Federation (AIFF) Technical Committee has narrowed down the search for the next head coach of the Senior Men’s National Football Team to three candidates: Khalid Jamil, Stephen Constantine, and Stefan Tarkovic. The final appointment will rest with the Federation’s Executive Committee, which is expected to make its decision soon.

After Igor Stimac and Manolo Marquez's stints as the head coaches in the last few seasons, Indian football has not progressed at all. Although India managed to win the SAFF Championship 2023 under Igor, the Blue Tigers won only one match under Marquez's 8-match stint. India lost 3 games while drawing four times, in those 8 games and that made India slip to 133rd position in the FIFA World Rankings.

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The Shortlisted Candidates

Khalid Jamil

An accomplished Indian coach, Jamil is renowned for his work in domestic football, notably guiding Aizawl FC to their historic I-League title. His deep understanding of Indian football and ability to bring the best out of local talent make him a strong contender for the position. 

Khaild Jamil has the experince of managing teams like ATK Mohun Bagan, East Bengal FC, NorthEast United FC, Bengaluru United and Jamshedpur FC. Last season under him, Jamshedpur FC reached the semi-finals of Indian Super League as well.

As per Transfermarkt's data, Jamil has coached 219 games till now while winning 83 of them. Jamil drew 65 games while losing 71.

Read Also | Football facts: Five managers who have coached Club and country at the same time

Stephen Constantine

The Englishman is no stranger to Indian football. Constantine had two previous stints as India’s head coach from 2002 to 2005 and 2015 to 2019, during which he oversaw significant improvements in the team's performance, including qualification for the 2019 AFC Asian Cup.

India went from 173 to 97 in the FIFA Rankings during his stint in 2015 to 2019.

Constantine just finished his stint as the head coach of the Pakistan Football team. He was seen last time in India in the 2022-23 season as the head coach of East Bengal FC. 

In the 52 matches he coached India in his two stints, Constantine won 25 of them, while losing 19 and drawing 8 times.

Read Also | Every Indian Team Football Coach Since 1948

Stefan Tarkovic

The experienced Slovak coach, best known for managing the Slovakia national team, brings a wealth of European experience and tactical know-how. His international pedigree could be influential in shaping a more competitive Indian squad.

Tarkovic just finished his stint as the head coach of Kyrgyzstan, where he won only 5 games, drew 4 and lost 9 games. However, in his managerial career, he won 32 out of 108 games, keeping a 1.18 points per game stat. 

Since India's independence, there have been many different coaches for the national team, out of which some were foreign. The most successful coach for India was Syed Abdul Rahim, who led India to gold in both the 1951 and 1962 Asian Games while also achieving a fourth-place finish during the 1956 Summer Olympics.

While the most successful foreign coaches for India were Bob Houghton and Stephen Constantine; both of them helped the team to qualify for the AFC Asian Cup. With Houghton in charge from 2006 to 2011, India won the Nehru Cup twice and the AFC Challenge Cup in 2008, which allowed them to participate in their first AFC Asian Cup for 27 years.

Since Houghton resigned as head coach in 2011, the Indian national team's FIFA ranking touched its lowest at 173 in the team history in March 2015, but Stephen Constantine, who was appointed for the second time as the head coach of India, revived the Indian team from its meagre condition. 

Under Constantine, the team remained unbeaten for two years from June 2016 to March 2018 winning 11 matches and drawn 2 matches, which helped them to qualify for 2019 AFC Asian Cup, 8 years since Houghton left. He also helped the team to reach a better FIFA ranking of 96 in July 2017, which was the best in last 21 years.

Let's have a look at every Indian Team Football coach since 1948.

Every Indian Team Football Coach

Manolo Márquez

• Appointed - July 20, 2024
• Post Ended - July 2, 2025
• Matches - 8

Manolo Marquez was appointed as the head coach of the Indian men’s football team in June last year. Under his tenure, the Blue Tigers picked up just one win in eight matches, a 3-0 victory over the Maldives in a friendly in March.

Marquez took over the top job in Indian football after guiding Hyderabad FC to the Indian Super League (ISL) title in the 2021-22. He also won the Super Cup trophy with FC Goa earlier this year. Last year, he juggled dual responsibilities, serving as head coach of FC Goa during the 2024-25 season while continuing his role as head coach of the Indian national team.

Igor Stimac

• Appointed - May 15, 2019
• Post Ended - June 17, 2024
• Matches - 53

Igor Stimac, who was part of the famous Croatia side which finished third in the FIFA World Cup 1998 in France, had replaced Englishman Stephen Constantine as India’s head coach in 2019.

Stimac's five-year-long tenure has been a mixed bag for Indian football. He led India to the SAFF Championship title twice in 2021 and 2023. India also won the 2023 Tri-Nation Series and Intercontinental Cup under him. However, India’s performances at higher-tier football events under Stimac have been disappointing at best. Despite qualifying for the AFC Asian Cup 2023 in Qatar, India failed to register a single point or goal in the group stage of the main event.

Under the Croat, India made the second round of the FIFA World Cup 2026 AFC qualifiers but failed to progress any further after a slew of disappointing results on the field. Stimac has been in charge of the Indian senior team in 53 international matches, winning 19, drawing 14 and losing 20.

Stephen Constantine

• Appointed - January 16, 2015
• Post Ended - January 31, 2019
• Matches - 43

This was Stephen Constantine's second tenure as India's coach when he took up the job in 2015. He previously served as the boss between 2002 and 2005. The combined seven years makes him the longest-serving foreign manager for the Indian team.

Under Constantine, India witnessed a surge in the Fifa world rankings, famously breaking into the top-100 last year after a string of good results. In early 2016, Constantine tasted silverware with the Indian team as his side beat Afghanistan 2-1 to win the SAFF Championship title. Between 2017 and 2018, the Indian team went on a memorable unbeaten streak of 13 games before crashing to a 1-2 loss against Kyrgyzstan.

The Indians also won the Intercontinental cup on home soil and booked their place in the AFC Asian Cup after missing out on the 2015 edition under his coaching.

Every Indian Team Football Coach Since 1948

I-League, the second tier of Indian Football, was once the top-tier football league of the country, before the Indian Super League (ISL) replaced it. From 1996 to the 2006-07 season, the league was named the National Football League, and from 2007-08, it was rebranded as the I-League. 

The league operates on a relegation and promotion system with I-League 2 and a first-only promotion system with the ISL, from the 2022–23 season. This means the I-League winners get a promotion to the Indian Super League, whereas the bottom team gets relegated to I-League 2. 

Since the rebranding of the league, Dempo SC have won the league most times (3). Churchill Brothers, Mohun Bagan, Bengaluru and Gokulam Kerala have won the league twice.

Read Also | Top 5 Indian Players to Watch in ISL 2025

Inter Kashi were on Friday declared I-League 2024-25 champions after the Switzerland-based Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) rejected the All India Football Federation's (AIFF) Appeal Committee's decision of awarding the title to Churchill Brothers of Goa. 

This made Inter Kashi only the third team to get promoted from I-League to ISL, after Punjab FC (RoundGlass Punjab), Mohammedan Sporting.

Read Also | Most Promising U-21 Footballers in India

Why was there confusion about announcing the I-League 2024-25 winners?

On 31st May 2025, the AIFF announced Churchill Brothers as the I-League 2024-25 champions after its Appeal Committee ruled against Inter Kashi in a matter related to the fielding of an 'ineligible player'. Inter Kashi finished as the runners-up after getting two points deducted. 

However, Inter Kashi filed an appeal against AIFF's decision on 4 June 2025.  On 18th July 2025, the Switzerland-based Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) asked the AIFF to reverse its decision of awarding the 2024-25 season title to Churchill Brothers.

Inter Kashi thus now have won the I-League in their second season in Indian Football. 

Read Also | 5 memorable performances by Indian football teams in Asian competitions

Clubs promoted to ISL from I-League

I-League winners since 2007-08

Former Indian national football team captain Sunil Chhetri has expressed deep concern over the suspension of the Indian Super League and the future of India's footballing ecosystem.

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“The current situation that Indian football finds itself in, is very concerning. I’ve received a flurry of texts from players, staff members, physios, masseurs - not just from my club, but from other clubs as well,” Chhetri wrote on his social media handle X (formerly Twitter).

When my phone went off a few weeks ago informing us of a delay in pre-season by a fortnight, I must admit it made me smile. And that’s because I was on vacation, hadn’t moved as much as I would have liked to, and hadn’t been eating as clean as I usually do. I had more time than I… pic.twitter.com/pEGyr8Sp5O

— Sunil Chhetri (@chetrisunil11) July 16, 2025

Worried about the future - Chhetri 

Chhetri, who plays for Bengaluru FC in the ISL, wrote on social media, “I’ve received a flurry of texts from players, staff members, physios, masseurs – not just from my club, but from other clubs as well.

“Everybody in the Indian football ecosystem is worried, hurt, scared about the uncertainty we are faced with,” he added.

There is no new agreement between AIFF and FSDL

The 2025-26 season of the ISL has been put 'on hold' as the Master Rights Agreement (MRA) between the All India Football Federation (AIFF) and organising company Football Sports Development Limited (FSDL) has not been renewed yet.

The Supreme Court has directed the AIFF not to enter into any new agreement with FSDL until a final decision is taken on the AIFF.

A 15-year agreement was signed in 2010

A 15-year agreement between FSDL and AIFF was signed in 2010, under which FSDL pays Rs 50 crore every year to AIFF in return for the rights to broadcast, manage and promote Indian football (including ISL and the national team).

Please stay calm - Chhetri

Sunil Chhetri appealed to all the players and support staff to maintain patience and support each other. He expressed confidence that football will resume soon. The AIFF has also said that it understands the importance of ISL, but it is compelled to follow the court's order.

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“I may not have all the answers, but my message to all those involved with Indian football – and more importantly the ones whose livelihood depends on it, the players, staff, kitmen, masseurs, medical teams, production crews, operations staff – please stay calm.”

“We’ll ride this storm together. Stick together and look out for each other. Keep training and getting better. Football has to resume soon. It will,” Sunil Chhetri shared.