| Season | 2017–18 |
|---|---|
| Dates | 25 November 2017 – 8 March 2018 |
| Champions | Minerva Punjab 1st I-League title 1stIndian title |
| Relegated | Churchill Brothers |
| AFC Champions League | Minerva Punjab |
| Matches | 90 |
| Goals | 205 (2.28 per match) |
| Top goalscorer | Aser Pierrick Dipanda (13 goals) |
| Best goalkeeper | Shilton Paul (8 clean sheets) |
| Biggest home win | East Bengal 7–1Chennai City (24 February 2018) |
| Biggest away win | Gokulam Kerala 0–3NEROCA (9 December 2017) |
| Highest scoring | East Bengal 7–1Chennai City (24 February 2018) |
| Longest winning run | Minerva Punjab East Bengal(4 games) |
| Longest unbeaten run | NEROCA (9 games) |
| Longest winless run | Churchill Brothers (6 games) |
| Longest losing run | Churchill Brothers (5 games ) |
| Highest attendance | 64,630 Mohun Bagan vsEast Bengal (3 December 2017) |
| Lowest attendance | 218 Indian Arrows vsChennai City (29 November 2017) |
| Total attendance | 832,665 |
| Average attendance | 10,280 |
2018–19 → | |
The2017–18 I-League was the 11th season of theI-League.Aizawl were the defending champions.NEROCA entered as the promoted team from the2016–17 I-League 2nd Division. The season began on 25 November 2017.Minerva Punjab won their first I-League title.[1]
All India Football Federation invited bids for new teams on 21 July 2017 from Bengaluru, Mumbai, New Delhi, Ranchi, Jaipur, Jodhpur, Bhopal, Lucknow, Ahmedabad, Malappuram and Trivandrum, among others.[2]On 20 September, after second round of bidding invitation, the Bid Evaluation Committee decided to award Sree Gokulam Group the right to field their team in the Hero I-League 2017–18 season onward fromKozhikode,Kerala.[3]Bengaluru FC successfully bid for a place in2017–18 Indian Super League and thus was not a part ofI-League.NEROCA F.C. were promoted for winning2016–17 I-League 2nd Division. After successful hosting ofFIFA U-17 World Cup, AIFF revivedIndian Arrows project to field the colts in I-League.
| Team | Location | Stadium | Capacity |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aizawl | Aizawl,Mizoram | Rajiv Gandhi Stadium | 20,000[4] |
| Chennai City | Coimbatore,Tamil Nadu | Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, Coimbatore | 30,000[5] |
| Churchill Brothers | Salcete,Goa | Tilak Maidan Stadium | 6,000 |
| East Bengal | Kolkata,West Bengal | Salt Lake Stadium Barasat Stadium | 66,000 |
| 22,000 | |||
| Indian Arrows | Delhi,New Delhi Bambolim,Goa | Ambedkar Stadium GMC Bambolim Athletic Stadium | 35,000[6] |
| 6,500 | |||
| Gokulam Kerala | Kozhikode,Kerala | EMS Stadium | 54,000 |
| Minerva Punjab | Ludhiana,Punjab | Guru Nanak Stadium | 15,000[7] |
| Mohun Bagan | Kolkata,West Bengal | Salt Lake Stadium Barasat Stadium Mohun Bagan Ground | 66,687[8] |
| 22,000 | |||
| 22,000 | |||
| NEROCA | Imphal,Manipur | Khuman Lampak Main Stadium | 30,000 |
| Shillong Lajong | Shillong,Meghalaya | Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium | 30,000 |
| Team | Head coach | Kit manufacturer | Shirt sponsor |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aizawl | Vamos | NE Consultancy Services | |
| Chennai City | Counter Sports[9] | None | |
| Churchill Brothers | Faisports | Churchill Group | |
| East Bengal | PERF | Kingfisher | |
| Gokulam Kerala | Kaizen sports | Aachi Group | |
| Indian Arrows | Nike | None | |
| Minerva Punjab | Astro[10] | Apollo Tyres[11] | |
| Mohun Bagan | Shiv Naresh | Nilkamal | |
| NEROCA | Vector X[12] | Classic Group of Hotels | |
| Shillong Lajong | Nivia Sports[13] | None |
On 2 August 2017, it was announced by theAll India Football Federation that the number of foreigners for each I-League club would go up to six, with two of the six having to be born in Asia or registered with theAFC.[14]
Indian Arrows cannot sign any foreign players as they are the AIFF developmental team.
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Minerva Punjab(C) | 18 | 11 | 2 | 5 | 24 | 16 | +8 | 35 | Qualification to2019 AFC Champions League qualifier |
| 2 | NEROCA | 18 | 9 | 5 | 4 | 20 | 13 | +7 | 32 | |
| 3 | Mohun Bagan | 18 | 8 | 7 | 3 | 28 | 14 | +14 | 31 | |
| 4 | East Bengal | 18 | 8 | 7 | 3 | 32 | 19 | +13 | 31 | |
| 5 | Aizawl | 18 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 21 | 18 | +3 | 24 | |
| 6 | Shillong Lajong | 18 | 6 | 4 | 8 | 17 | 25 | −8 | 22 | |
| 7 | Gokulam Kerala | 18 | 6 | 3 | 9 | 17 | 23 | −6 | 21 | |
| 8 | Chennai City | 18 | 4 | 7 | 7 | 15 | 24 | −9 | 19 | |
| 9 | Churchill Brothers[a] | 18 | 5 | 2 | 11 | 17 | 28 | −11 | 17 | |
| 10 | Indian Arrows[b] | 18 | 4 | 3 | 11 | 13 | 24 | −11 | 15 |
| Home \ Away | AIZ | CHE | CB | KEB | IA | GK | MP | MB | NFC | SHI |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aizawl | — | 2–0 | 1–0 | 0–0 | 3–0 | 3–1 | 2–1 | 1–1 | 1–2 | 0–1 |
| Chennai City | 1–1 | — | 3–1 | 1–2 | 0–0 | 0–1 | 2–1 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0–0 |
| Churchill Brothers | 1–0 | 0–2 | — | 1–1 | 2–0 | 1–1 | 2–1 | 1–2 | 0–1 | 2–0 |
| East Bengal | 2–2 | 7–1 | 3–2 | — | 1–0 | 1–0 | 2–2 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 5–1 |
| Indian Arrows | 2–2 | 3–0 | 2–1 | 0–2 | — | 0–2 | 0–2 | 0–2 | 0–2 | 3–0 |
| Gokulam Kerala | 0–2 | 1–1 | 2–3 | 2–1 | 0–1 | — | 0–1 | 1–1 | 0–3 | 3–2 |
| Minerva Punjab | 2–0 | 2–1 | 1–0 | 0–1 | 1–0 | 0–1 | — | 1–1 | 2–1 | 3–2 |
| Mohun Bagan | 2–0 | 1–2 | 5–0 | 1–0 | 1–1 | 1–2 | 1–2 | — | 0–0 | 1–1 |
| NEROCA | 0–0 | 2–1 | 1–0 | 1–1 | 2–1 | 1–0 | 0–1 | 2–3 | — | 0–2 |
| Shillong Lajong | 2–1 | 0–0 | 2–0 | 2–2 | 1–0 | 1–0 | 0–1 | 0–3 | 0–1 | — |
Top scorers[edit]
| Top Indian scorers[edit]
|
| Player | For | Against | Result | Date | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| East Bengal | Chennai City | 7–0 | 24 February 2018 | [17] |
4 Player scored 4 goals.
| Rank | Player | Club | Clean sheets |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mohun Bagan | 8 | |
| 2 | Aizawl | 6 | |
| 3 | Shillong Lajong | 5 | |
| Chennai City | |||
| NEROCA | |||
| 6 | NEROCA | 4 | |
| Minerva Punjab | |||
| 8 | East Bengal | 3 | |
| Churchill Brothers | |||
| Minerva Punjab | |||
| 11 | Indian Arrows | 2 | |
| Indian Arrows | |||
| Shillong Lajong | |||
| East Bengal | |||
| Gokulam Kerala |
| Team | GP | Cumulative | High | Low | Mean |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| NEROCA | 9 | 192,438 | 35,285 | 11,020 | 21,382 |
| East Bengal | 9 | 156,295 | 52,951 | 8,692 | 17,366 |
| Mohun Bagan | 9 | 142,421 | 64,360 | 4,360 | 15,825 |
| Gokulam Kerala | 9 | 73,177 | 25,841 | 621 | 8,131 |
| Chennai City | 9 | 73,739 | 14,751 | 3,082 | 8,194 |
| Minerva Punjab | 9 | 51,627 | 8,243 | 3,845 | 5,736 |
| Shillong Lajong | 9 | 49,086 | 7,880 | 3,000 | 5,454 |
| Aizawl | 9 | 38,297 | 7,280 | 2,800 | 4,256 |
| Indian Arrows | 9 | 29,300 | 5,563 | 218 | 3,256 |
| Churchill Brothers | 9 | 26,285 | 3,437 | 2,400 | 2,921 |
| Total | 90 | 832,665 | 64,360 | 218 | 10,280 |
| Rank | Home team | Score | Away team | Attendance | Date | Stadium |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mohun Bagan | 1–0 | East Bengal | 64,360 | 3 December 2017 (2017-12-03) | Vivekananda Yuba Bharati Krirangan |
| 2 | East Bengal | 0–2 | Mohun Bagan | 52,951 | 21 January 2018 (2018-01-21) | Salt Lake Stadium |
| 3 | NEROCA | 2–1 | Indian Arrows | 35,285 | 5 January 2018 (2018-01-05) | Khuman Lampak Main Stadium |
| 4 | NEROCA | 1–1 | East Bengal | 28,243 | 30 December 2017 (2017-12-30) | Khuman Lampak Main Stadium |
| 5 | NEROCA | 2–1 | Chennai City | 27,633 | 15 December 2017 (2017-12-15) | Khuman Lampak Main Stadium |
| 6 | East Bengal | 1–1 | NEROCA | 26,900 | 8 March 2018 (2018-03-08) | Salt Lake Stadium |
| 7 | Gokulam Kerala | 1–1 | Chennai City | 25,841 | 4 December 2017 (2017-12-04) | EMS Stadium |
| 8 | NEROCA | 0–0 | Aizawl | 20,345 | 10 February 2018 (2018-02-10) | Khuman Lampak Main Stadium |
| 9 | Mohun Bagan | 1–2 | Chennai City | 18,316 | 2 January 2018 (2018-01-02) | Mohun Bagan Ground |
| 10 | NEROCA | 1–0 | Gokulam Kerala | 17,300 | 4 February 2018 (2018-02-04) | Khuman Lampak Main Stadium |
| Match | Hero of the Match | Match | Hero of the Match | Match | Hero of the Match | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Player | Club | Player | Club | Player | Club | |||
| 1 | Mohun Bagan | 31 | East Bengal | 61 | Mohun Bagan | |||
| 2 | Shillong Lajong | 32 | Chennai City | 62 | NEROCA | |||
| 3 | East Bengal | 33 | NEROCA | 63 | Indian Arrows | |||
| 4 | Indian Arrows | 34 | Chennai City | 64 | Churchill Brothers | |||
| 5 | Minerva Punjab | 35 | Minerva Punjab | 65 | Minerva Punjab | |||
| 6 | Shillong Lajong | 36 | Mohun Bagan | 66 | Chennai City | |||
| 7 | Mohun Bagan | 37 | Shillong Lajong | 67 | Aizawl | |||
| 8 | Gokulam Kerala | 38 | Churchill Brothers | 68 | Indian Arrows | |||
| 9 | Minerva Punjab | 39 | Chennai City | 69 | Chennai City | |||
| 10 | NEROCA | 40 | Minerva Punjab | 70 | Mohun Bagan | |||
| 11 | East Bengal | 41 | Indian Arrows | 71 | East Bengal | |||
| 12 | Mohun Bagan | 42 | Aizawl | 72 | NEROCA | |||
| 13 | Minerva Punjab | 43 | Minerva Punjab | 73 | Indian Arrows | |||
| 14 | Aizawl | 44 | Churchill Brothers | 74 | Gokulam Kerala | |||
| 15 | Mohun Bagan | 45 | Aizawl | 75 | Chennai City | |||
| 16 | NEROCA | 46 | NEROCA | 76 | NEROCA | |||
| 17 | Churchill Brothers | 47 | Churchill Brothers | 77 | Shillong Lajong | |||
| 18 | Shillong Lajong | 48 | NEROCA | 78 | Gokulam Kerala | |||
| 19 | Indian Arrows | 49 | Gokulam Kerala | 79 | Aizawl | |||
| 20 | Mohun Bagan | 50 | Mohun Bagan | 80 | East Bengal | |||
| 21 | Chennai City | 51 | Indian Arrows | 81 | Gokulam Kerala | |||
| 22 | Gokulam Kerala | 52 | Shillong Lajong | 82 | Minerva Punjab | |||
| 23 | Chennai City | 53 | Aizawl | 83 | Mohun Bagan | |||
| 24 | Shillong Lajong | 54 | Minerva Punjab | 84 | Aizawl | |||
| 25 | Indian Arrows | 55 | Indian Arrows | 85 | Chennai City | |||
| 26 | Aizawl | 56 | Gokulam Kerala | 86 | Mohun Bagan | |||
| 27 | East Bengal | 57 | Minerva Punjab | 87 | Shillong Lajong | |||
| 28 | Indian Arrows | 58 | NEROCA | 88 | Gokulam Kerala | |||
| 29 | East Bengal | 59 | Churchill Brothers | 89 | Churchill Brothers | |||
| 30 | Aizawl | 60 | Chennai City | 90 | NEROCA | |||
Hero I-League 2017–18 awards were announced on March 22.[19]
| Award | Recipient |
|---|---|
| Best Goalkeeper | Shilton Paul (Mohun Bagan) |
| Jarnail Singh Award for Best Defender | Varney Kallon (NEROCA) |
| Best Midfielder | Michael Soosairaj (Chennai City FC) |
| Best Forward | Chencho Gyeltshen (Minerva Punjab) |
| Highest Scorer | Aser Pierrick Dipanda (Mohun Bagan) |
| Best Emerging Player (U-22) | Samuel Lalmuanpuia (Shillong Lajong) |
| Syed Abdul Rahim Award for Best Coach | Gift Raikhan (NEROCA) |
| Best Organizers | NEROCA |
| Fairplay award | NEROCA |