The highest level of men's club football competition is the Indian Super League.
After the end of 2006–07 season, AIFF disbanded the NFL after allegedly missing the full aim of professionalism.
The I-League suffered from lack of popularity due to poor marketing as the seasons passed by.
[7] The deal between the Zee Sports and the AIFF, which was initially signed for a ten-year term in 2006, was terminated in 2010 after disagreement between both the parties.
AIFF then signed a new 700-crore deal with Reliance Industries and the International Management Group on 9 December 2010.
[8] The Indian Super League was officially launched on 21 October 2013 by IMG–Reliance, Star Sports, and the All India Football Federation with an aim of growing the sport of football in India and increasing its exposure in the country, this time with the big names and high professionalism.
[10] A couple of weeks later, the AIFF proposed that both the Indian Super League and I-League should run simultaneously on a short–term basis, with the I-League winner qualifying for the AFC Champions League and the ISL champion to AFC Cup qualification stage.
The first recommendation was to open a pathway for two I-League clubs to enter into the ISL by the end of the 2020–21 season, subject to the criteria being fulfilled.
The second recommendation was allowing the winner of the I-League to stand a chance of getting promoted to the ISL with no participation fee, starting with the 2022–23 season.
Since 2017–18 season, the league saw introduction of the I-League reserve sides which weren't eligible for promotion.
[25] Clubs such as Pune and Bengaluru expressed interests in joining a national women's league.
[25] It was around this time that AIFF started plans to create a league for women along the lines of ISL.
On 7 January 2023, the AIFF unveiled Vision 2047, a new roadmap for Indian football with the planned reforms in India's league system.
The Santosh Trophy[31] is a men's football competition contested by the regional state associations and government institutions under the AIFF.
Before starting the National Football League in 1996, the Santosh Trophy was considered the top domestic championship in India.
All affiliated State Units of AIFF are eligible to participate in this championship through the two tiers of the competition played across the country.