National Football League (India)
The National Football League (NFL) was the top division in Indian football. It was founded in 1996 and replaced in 2007 by the newly founded I-League . It was under the umbrella organization of the All India Football Federation .
master
| year | team |
|---|---|
| 1997 | JCT Mills Football Club Phagwara |
| 1998 | Mohun Bagan AC Kolkata |
| 1999 | Salgaocar Sports Club Goa |
| 2000 | Mohun Bagan AC Kolkata |
| 2001 | East Bengal Club Kolkata |
| 2002 | Mohun Bagan AC Kolkata |
| 2003 | East Bengal Club Kolkata |
| 2004 | East Bengal Club Kolkata |
| 2005 | Dempo Sports Club Goa |
| 2006 | Mahindra United Mumbai |
| 2007 | Dempo Sports Club Goa |
Top scorer
| season | Surname | team | Gates |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1996/97 | Baichung Bhutia | JCT Mills Football Club | 14th |
| 1997/98 | Raman Vijayan | FC Kochin | 10 |
| 1998/99 | Philip Mensah | Churchill Brothers SC Goa | 11 |
| 1999/00 | Igor Shkuyrin | Mohun Bagan Kolkata | 14th |
| 2000/01 | Jose Barreto | Mohun Bagan Kolkata | 14th |
| 2001/02 | Yakubu Yusif | Churchill Brothers SC Goa | 18th |
| 2002/03 | Yakubu Yusif | Churchill Brothers SC Goa | 21st |
| 2003/04 | Christiano Junior | East Bengal Club Kolkata | 15th |
| 2004/05 | Dudu Omaghbemi | Sporting Clube de Goa | 21st |
| 2005/06 | Ranty Martins | Churchill Brothers Goa | 13 |
| 2006/07 | Odafe Okolie | Dempo Sports Club Goa | 18th |
Playing times
1996/97 season
In the first season of the National Football League , the Jagatjit Cotton & Textile Mills team, or in their well-known short form JCT Mills from Phagwara in Punjab, became the first Indian football champions. They were able to complete both the preliminary round and the championship round as first in the table and received prize money of 3.5 million rupees .
The top scorer was Baichung Bhutia from JCT Mills with 14 goals. The season ended with a heart-stopping, in which JCT Mills, the long-distance duel with Churchill Brothers in Chennai with a 1-1 against IT Chennai did not come out. What was surprising in the first season was that apart from the East Bengal Club, the two other top clubs from the football stronghold of Kolkata had n't played a role, which was probably due to the fact that they considered the regional league to be more important. The first season regardless of this was a complete success for the newly founded league.
Preliminary round
Group A
| Pl. | team | Gates | Diff. | Pt |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | JCT Mills Football Club Phagwara | 09-03 | + 6 | 11 |
| 2. | East Bengal Club Kolkata | 06-02 | + 4 | 11 |
| 3. | Salgaocar Sports Club Goa | 03-05 | - 2nd | 06 |
| 4th | Indian Bank RC Chennai | 03-05 | - 2nd | 06 |
| 5. | Mohammedan Sporting Club Kolkata | 03-06 | - 3 | 03 |
| 6th | ITI Bangalore | 03-10 | - 7th | 01 |
Group B
| Pl. | team | Gates | Diff. | Pt |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Dempo Sports Club Goa | 08-01 | + 7 | 12 |
| 2. | Air India Football Club Mumbai | 07-06 | + 1 | 10 |
| 3. | Churchill Brothers SC Goa | 07-06 | + 1 | 07 |
| 4th | Mahindra United Mumbai | 06-07 | - 1 | 07 |
| 5. | Mohun Bagan AC Kolkata | 06-06 | 0 | 06 |
| 6th | Kerala Police Thiruvananthapuram | 03-11 | - 8th | 00 |
Finals
| Pl. | team | Gates | Diff. | Pt |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | JCT Mills Football Club Phagwara | 26-08 | +18 | 30th |
| 2. | Churchill Brothers SC Goa | 20-10 | +10 | 29 |
| 3. | East Bengal Club Kolkata | 19-11 | +8 | 25th |
| 4th | Dempo Sports Club Goa | 19-17 | +2 | 18th |
| 5. | Indian Bank RC Chennai | 14-18 | -4 | 15th |
| 6th | Air India Football Club Mumbai | 11-16 | -5 | 15th |
| 7th | Salgaocar Sports Club Goa | 08-13 | -5 | 13 |
| 8th. | Mahindra United Mumbai | 10-34 | -24 | 03 |
1997/98 season
| Pl. | team | Gates | Diff. | Pt |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 01. | Mohun Bagan AC Calcutta | 20-10 | +10 | 34 |
| 02. | East Bengal Club Calcutta | 18-10 | + 8 | 31 |
| 03. | Salgaocar Sports Club Goa | 19-13 | + 6 | 30th |
| 04. | FC Kochin | 26-20 | + 6 | 29 |
| 05. | Air India Football Club Mumbai | 18-16 | +2 | 26th |
| 06. | Dempo Sports Club Goa | 20-22 | -2 | 22nd |
| 07. | JCT Mills Football Club Phagwara (M) | 19-15 | +4 | 21st |
| 08. | Indian Bank RC Chennai | 20-23 | -2 | 21st |
| 09 | Churchill Brothers SC Goa | 20-26 | -6 | 19th |
| 10. | Mahindra United Mumbai | 05-30 | -25 | 05 |
1998/99 season
In the third season of the National Football League, the league was again divided into 2 groups. The team around JCT Mills moved to their new home stadium in the Punjab industrial city of Ludhiana , so that no team from Delhi played in the league. In the first half of the season, the newcomer Tollygunge from Kolkata surprised , who was able to top the table in Group A before defending champion Mohun Bagan. But in the second half of the season Tollygunge could barely qualify for the final round.
The final round was named Super League and was played in two tournaments in Goa and Kolkata. In the end, Salgaocar was able to prevail and was the only time Indian football champion. The top scorer was Philip Mensah of the Churchill Brothers with 11 goals.
Preliminary group A
| Pl. | team | Gates | Pt |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Mohun Bagan AC Kolkata (M) | 14-07 | 17th |
| 2. | JCT Mills Football Club Ludhiana | 12-08 | 17th |
| 3. | Churchill Brothers Goa | 15-10 | 14th |
| 4th | Tollygunge Agragami Kolkata (N) | 09-08 | 14th |
| 5. | Dempo Sports Club Goa | 07-12 | 09 |
| 6th | Air India Football Club Mumbai | 05-17 | 07 |
Preliminary group B
| Pl. | team | Gates | Pt |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | East Bengal Club Kolkata | 19-02 | 26th |
| 2. | FC Kochin Kochi | 19-12 | 17th |
| 3. | Salgaocar Sports Club Goa | 17-08 | 16 |
| 4th | Mahindra United Mumbai | 13-19 | 10 |
| 5. | ITI Bangalore (N) | 06-19 | 08 |
| 6th | Indian Bank RC Chennai | 11-25 | 07 |
Final round - Super League
| Pl. | team | Gates | Diff. | Pt |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Salgaocar Sports Club Goa | 17-06 | +11 | 23 |
| 2. | East Bengal Club Kolkata | 14-08 | + 6 | 19th |
| 3. | Churchill Brothers SC Goa | 12-11 | + 1 | 15th |
| 4th | Mohun Bagan AC Kolkata (M) | 05-10 | - 5th | 10 |
| 5. | JCT Mills Football Club Phagwara | 08-09 | - 1 | 09 |
| 6th | FC Kochin Kochi | 03-15 | -12 | 03 |
1999/2000 season
| 1 | Mohun Bagan Kolkata | 47 |
| 2 | Churchill Brothers SC Goa | 41 |
| 3 | Salgaocar Sports Club Goa (M) | 39 |
| 4th | FC Kochin | 34 |
| 5 | JCT Mills Football Club | 34 |
| 6th | Mahindra United Mumbai | 33 |
| 7th | East Bengal Club Kolkata | 32 |
| 8th | Tollygunge Kolkata | 26th |
| 9 | State Bank of Travancore FC Thiruvananthapuram (N) | 24 |
| 10 | ITI Bangalore | 18th |
| 11 | BSF (N) | 17th |
| 12 | Dempo Sports Club | 11 |
2000/01 season
1. East Bengal Club 46
2. Mohun Bagan 45
3. Churchill Brothers SC 36
4. FC Kochin 34
5 Vasco da Gama 27
6. Salgaocar Sports Club 26
7. Mahindra United 25
8. Tollygunge 24
9. JCT Mills Football Club 23
10 ITI 22
11. Air India Football Club 21
12. State Bank of Travancore FC 20
2001/02 season
| Pl. | team | Gates | Diff. | Pt |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Mohun Bagan Kolkata | 31 -19 | +12 | 44 |
| 2. | Zee Churchill Brothers Goa | 44-19 | +25 | 42 |
| 3. | Vasco Sports Club Goa | 28 -20 | +8 | 40 |
| 4th | Salgaocar Sports Club Goa | 32 - 17 | +15 | 39 |
| 5. | East Bengal Club Kolkata | 31 -23 | +8 | 36 |
| 6th | Mahindra United Mumbai | 25-19 | +6 | 33 |
| 7th | Indian Telephone Industries Bangalore | 26-26 | 0 | 30th |
| 8th. | Hindustan Aeronautics Limited SC Bangalore | 18-26 | -8th | 28 |
| 9. | Tollygunge Aggragami Calcutta | 26 - 37 | -21 | 23 |
| 10. | JCT Mills Football Club Phagwara | 18-26 | -8th | 21st |
| 11. | FC Kochin Kochi | 12-32 | -20 | 17th |
| 12. | Punjab Police Jalandhar | 11 -38 | -27 | 12 |
2002/03 season
1. East Bengal Club Kolkata
2. Salgaocar Sports Club Goa
3. Vasco Sports Club Goa
4. JCT Mills Football Club Phagwara
5. Churchill Brothers SC Goa
6. Dempo Sports Club Goa
7. Mohun Bagan AC Kolkata (M)
8. Mahindra United Mumbai
9. Tollygunge Agragami Kolkata
10. Indian Bank RC Chennai
11. Hindustan Aeronautics Limited SC Bangalore
12. Indian Telephone Industries Bangalore
2003/04 season
| Pl. | team | Gates | Diff. | Pt |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 01. | East Bengal Club Kolkata (M) | 37-13 | +24 | 49 |
| 02. | Dempo Sports Club Goa | 28-12 | +16 | 45 |
| 03. | Mahindra United Mumbai | 34-21 | +14 | 41 |
| 04. | Churchill Brothers SC Goa | 29-24 | +5 | 36 |
| 05. | JCT Mills Football Club | 23-21 | +2 | 33 |
| 06. | Vasco Sports Club Goa | 22-19 | +3 | 28 |
| 07. | Haywards Sporting Clube Goa (N) | 34-35 | -1 | 27 |
| 08. | Salgaocar Sports Club Goa | 23-21 | +2 | 27 |
| 09 | Mohun Bagan AC Kolkata | 22-23 | -1 | 24 |
| 10. | Tollygunge Agragami Kolkata | 16-24 | -8th | 20th |
| 11. | Mohammedan Sporting Club Kolkata (N) | 20-39 | -19 | 19th |
| 12. | Indian Bank RC Chennai | 15-50 | -35 | 8th |
2004/05 season
| Pl. | team | Gates | Diff. | Pt |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 01. | Dempo Sports Club Goa | 27-16 | +11 | 47 |
| 02. | Sporting Clube de Goa | 46-23 | +23 | 45 |
| 03. | East Bengal Club Kolkata (M) | 33-15 | +18 | 43 |
| 04. | Mahindra United Mumbai | 29-21 | +8 | 35 |
| 05. | Fransa-Pax Football Club Goa (N) | 24-26 | -2 | 30th |
| 06. | Salgaocar Sports Club Goa | 26-24 | +2 | 28 |
| 07. | JCT Mills Football Club | 19-19 | 0 | 28 |
| 08. | Mohun Bagan AC Kolkata | 16-19 | -3 | 23 |
| 09 | Churchill Brothers SC Goa | 23-33 | -10 | 23 |
| 10. | Vasco Sports Club Goa | 25-37 | -12 | 20th |
| 11. | State Bank of Travancore FC Thiruvananthapuram (N) | 24-34 | -10 | 18th |
| 12. | Tollygunge Agragami Kolkata | 20-45 | -25 | 17th |
2005/06 season
| Pl. | team | Gates | Diff. | Pt |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 01. | Mahindra United Mumbai | 24-11 | +13 | 32 |
| 02. | East Bengal Club Kolkata | 23-13 | +10 | 28 |
| 03. | Mohun Bagan AC Kolkata | 13-9 | +4 | 21st |
| 04. | Dempo Sports Club Goa (M) | 22-18 | +4 | 20th |
| 05. | JCT Mills Football Club | 13-11 | +2 | 20th |
| 06. | Sporting Clube de Goa | 16-10 | +6 | 19th |
| 07. | Air India Football Club Mumbai (N) | 14-19 | -5 | 15th |
| 08. | Mohammedan Sporting Club Kolkata (N) | 7-23 | -16 | 14th |
| 09 | Salgaocar Sports Club Goa | 11-18 | -7 | 11 |
| 10. | Fransa-Pax Football Club Goa | 2-13 | -11 | 04 |
2006/07 season
The eleventh season got the addition of the 11th "ONGC Cup" National Football League . The promotion place of the Tata Football Academy (TFA) was awarded to Hindustan Aeronautics Limited SC Bangalore, because the TFA did not register for the NFL. It was also the last season of the National Football League, which was replaced by the I-League from the 2007/08 season.
| Pl. | team | Gates | Diff. | Pt |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 01. | Dempo Sports Club Goa | 37-21 | +16 | 36 |
| 02. | JCT Mills Football Club | 31-19 | +12 | 31 |
| 03. | Mahindra United Mumbai (M) | 29-14 | +15 | 30th |
| 04. | Churchill Brothers SC Goa (N) | 30-23 | +7 | 29 |
| 05. | East Bengal Club Kolkata | 29-29 | +0 | 26th |
| 06. | Sporting Clube de Goa | 23-19 | +4 | 25th |
| 07. | Air India Football Club Mumbai | 20-23 | -3 | 21st |
| 08. | Mohun Bagan AC Kolkata | 15-21 | -6 | 21st |
| 09 | Mohammedan Sporting Club Kolkata | 17-42 | -15 | 12 |
| 10. | Hindustan Aeronautics Limited SC Bangalore (N) | 12-32 | -20 | 10 |
Eternal table
| rank |
team |
Playing times | Games | Victories | draw | Defeats | Points | Points per game | Relative rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | East Bengal Club | 10 | 191 | 104 | 49 | 38 | 361 | 1,890 | 1 |
| 2 | Mohun Bagan Athletic Club | 9 | 177 | 79 | 53 | 45 | 290 | 1,638 | 2 |
| 3 | Salgaocar Sports Club | 10 | 191 | 76 | 54 | 61 | 282 | 1,476 | 6th |
| 4th | Churchill Brothers SC | 9 | 174 | 75 | 53 | 46 | 278 | 1,598 | 3 |
| 5 | JCT Mills Football Club | 10 | 191 | 63 | 68 | 60 | 257 | 1,346 | 8th |
| 6th | Mahindra United | 9 | 181 | 63 | 48 | 70 | 237 | 1,309 | 9 |
| 7th | Dempo Sports Club | 8th | 137 | 52 | 47 | 38 | 203 | 1,482 | 5 |
| 8th | Vasco Sports Club | 5 | 110 | 40 | 38 | 32 | 158 | 1,436 | 7th |
| 9 | Tollygunge Agragami | 6th | 132 | 29 | 46 | 57 | 133 | 1.008 | 13 |
| 10 | FC Kochin | 5 | 94 | 30th | 27 | 37 | 117 | 1,247 | 10 |
| 11 | Sporting Clube de Goa | 3 | 61 | 27 | 16 | 18th | 97 | 1,590 | 4th |
| 12 | Air India Football Club | 5 | 71 | 19th | 25th | 27 | 82 | 1,155 | 11 |
| 13 | Indian Telephone Industries | 4th | 88 | 16 | 30th | 42 | 78 | 0.886 | 16 |
| 14th | Indian Bank RC | 4th | 76 | 16 | 16 | 44 | 64 | 0.842 | 18th |
| 15th | State Bank of Travancore FC | 3 | 66 | 15th | 17th | 34 | 62 | 0.939 | 14th |
| 16 | Hindustan Aeronautics Limited SC | 2 | 44 | 11 | 6th | 27 | 39 | 0.886 | 17th |
| 17th | Mohammedan Sporting Club | 2 | 39 | 9 | 9 | 21st | 36 | 0.923 | 15th |
| 18th | Fransa-Pax Football Club | 2 | 31 | 8th | 10 | 13 | 34 | 1,098 | 12 |
| 19th | Border Security Force | 1 | 22nd | 4th | 5 | 13 | 17th | 0.773 | 19th |
| 20th | Punjab Police | 1 | 22nd | 3 | 3 | 16 | 12 | 0.545 | 20th |
Individual evidence
- ↑ with their current name