The Premier Division of the league was first introduced in 1996, though the country already had a long history in the sport thanks to the likes of the IFA Shield and the Federation Cup.

The 1996–97 Indian National Football League was the first season of the NFL and ended with JCT Mills FC being crowned champions.

The NFL era though saw Kolkata clubs East Bengal and Mohun Bagan had the most championships with three respectively.

In July 2017, it was proposed by the All India Football Federation (AIFF) that the Indian Super League champion be granted a spot in the AFC Cup, Asia's second-tier club competition.

Thus, from the 2017–18 season, the Indian Super League champions were allowed to participate in the AFC Cup from the qualification stages of the competition.

From 2017–18 season until 2021–22 season, I-League and Indian Super League shared joint top flight status in Indian Football There are 12 clubs who have won either the National Football League or the I-League.