Sports
Fed Cup to be on hold for two-three years: AIFF
New Delhi, April 23
The country's age-old
inter-club knockout tournament Federation Cup will be on hold for the
next two-three years, the All India Football Federation (AIFF) announced
on Thursday.
The decision was taken at a meeting of the AIFF
executive committee chaired by its president Praful Patel at "Football
House" here.
After detailed discussions, the committee decided to
change the format of the Federation Cup to strengthen the second
division League, an AIFF release said.
"All the members
unanimously felt that for the next 2-3 years the Federation Cup should
be kept on hold and instead the 2nd Division League and the U-19 League
should be broad based to include more Teams and games," the release
said.
The AIFF clarified that the format of the I-League and the
second division league in terms of promotion and relegation would stay
the same.
The Federation Cup, started in 1977, was the country's
most important national level club football tournament till the launch
of the National Football League in 1997.