I-League 2021-22 season to resume on March 3

The All India Football Federation (AIFF) on Tuesday said that the 2021-22 season of the I-League will resume on March 3, three months after it was postponed due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The AIFF said the bio-bubble will start functioning again from February 20 onwards and strict COVID-19 protocols will be enforced to ensure the safety of the players and officials.

On January 3, the I-League was suspended by the AIFF after a fresh COVID-19 outbreak hit the participating teams inside the bio-bubble in Kolkata. It was learned at that time that a total of 45 COVID-19 cases had hit the league,



which prompted the AIFF to suspend the league for at least six weeks. All the players and officials left the bio-bubble after that.

"Continuing as before, the Hero I-League will be played from within the safety of a bio-bubble, which will begin on February 20, with the players and officials needing to travel through three negative RT-PCR tests before joining the bio-bubble," the AIFF said in a statement.

"Additionally, on the advice of Dr. Harsh Mahajan, Member of AIFF’s Sports Medical Committee, every player is also required to do a 12 lead ECG before arrival," it added.