The2019 AIFF Super Cup, officially known as the2019 Hero Super Cup for sponsorship reasons, was the second edition of theSuper Cup and the 40th season of the nationalknockoutfootball competition inIndia. The competition was sponsored byHero MotoCorp. The competition began with the qualifiers on 15 March[1] atKalinga Stadium inBhubaneshwar and was concluded with thefinal on 13 April.
A total of 16 teams are participating in the competition proper.[4] The top six teams from both theI-League andIndian Super League qualified for the Super Cup automatically while the bottom four sides have participated in the qualifiers. Before the qualification round, sevenI-League clubs — Minerva Punjab, East Bengal, Mohun Bagan, NEROCA, Gokulam Kerala and Aizawl announced they would withdraw from Super Cup, citing "unfair treatment to I-League clubs."[5]
After the conclusion of theI-League andIndian Super League seasons, theAll India Football Federation announced the draw for the qualification round of the Super Cup. Before the qualification round, sevenI-League clubs — Minerva Punjab, East Bengal, Mohun Bagan, NEROCA, Gokulam Kerala, and Aizawl — announced they would withdraw from Super Cup, citing "unfair treatment to I-League clubs."[5]