Indian football league group
Football league
TheChennai Football League , formerly known as theMadras Football League , is the group ofstate-level football leagues in theIndian state ofTamil Nadu ,[ 2] [ 3] [ 4] including the top-levelCFA Senior Division League .[ 5] [ 6] [ 7] The League is organised by theChennai Football Association (CFA), which is affiliated to theTamil Nadu Football Association (TNFA), the official football governing body of the state.
The Madras Football Association was formed on 26 October 1933, with had the jurisdiction over the undivided province of Madras in British India. It was formed by the members of the Madras United Club.[ 8] The Madras Football Association league championship was started in 1934 with the inaugural 1934-35 league championship won by the Pachaiyappa football club. The MFA started conducting the First division league from 1936, and the Second division from 1937. In the year of 1972, Madras city clubs formed a separate association and the federation became a part of the Tamil Nadu Football Association.[ 9]
The league was suspended since the 2018 edition due to the legal disputes between Chennai FA and Tamil Nadu FA,[ 10] [ 11] but eventually resumed in 2022.[ 12]
Competition structure [ edit ] There are five divisions in the league under the Chennai Football Association (CFA), with the CFA Senior Division being the top-most league, followed by four lower tiers.[ 5]
Chennai Football League Tier Division 1(5 on Indian Footballpyramid ) CFA Senior Division↑promote (to I-League 3) ↓relegate 2(6 on Indian Footballpyramid ) CFA First Division↑promote ↓relegate 3(7 on Indian Footballpyramid ) CFA Second Division↑promote ↓relegate 4(8 on Indian Footballpyramid ) CFA Third Division↑promote ↓relegate 5(9 on Indian Footballpyramid ) CFA Fourth Division↑promote
The matches are held atNehru Stadium andICF Stadium .
The teams participating in the 2024–25 season:[ 13]
No. Team 1 AGORC 2 Central Excise 3 Chennai City Police 4 Chennai Customs 5 Indian Bank 6 ICF 7 Nethaji FC 8 Tamil Nadu Police
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National teams
League system
Cup competitions
Club State (Senior) State (Youth) International
Defunct competitions
Others
Football in Tamil Nadu
State teams Clubs League competitions Cup competitions Stadiums
National
Regional
† Defunct;^ Proposed