Chennai Football League

The Chennai Football League, formerly known as the Madras Football League, is the group of state-level football leagues in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu,^[2][3][4] including the top-level CFA Senior Division League.^[5][6][7] The League is organised by the Chennai Football Association (CFA), which is affiliated to the Tamil Nadu Football Association (TNFA), the official football governing body of the state.

Chennai Football League

Organising body	Chennai Football Association
Founded	1934; 90 years ago (1934) (as Madras Football League)
Country	India
Number of teams	12
Level on pyramid	5–9
Promotion to	I-League 3
Relegation to	Various
Domestic cup(s)	Vittal Trophy[1] TFA Shield
Current champions	Swaraj FC (1st title)

History

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

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 Football pyramid)	CFA Senior Division ↑promote (to I-League 3) ↓relegate
2 (6 on Indian Football pyramid)	CFA First Division ↑promote ↓relegate
3 (7 on Indian Football pyramid)	CFA Second Division ↑promote ↓relegate
4 (8 on Indian Football pyramid)	CFA Third Division ↑promote ↓relegate
5 (9 on Indian Football pyramid)	CFA Fourth Division ↑promote

Venue

The matches are held at Nehru Stadium and ICF Stadium.

Champions

Season	Champion
1934–35	Pachaiyappa FC
1936–1949	No data
1950	WIMCO (Western India Match Company)[13]
1951	WIMCO
1952	WIMCO
1953	WIMCO
1954	WIMCO
1955	WIMCO
1956–1969	No data
1970	SBI[14]
1971–1974	No data
1975	WIMCO
1976	WIMCO
1977–1987	No data
1988	Southern Railway[15]
1989–1992	No data
1993	ICF (Integral Coach Factory)
1994	ICF
1995	ICF
1996	No data
1997	Indian Bank[16]
1998	Indian Bank[17]
1999–2000	No data
2000–01	Indian Bank
2001–02	AGORC
2002–03	Indian Bank[18]
2003–04	Madras Sporting Union[19]
2004–05	ICF[20]
2005–06	ICF
2006–07	ICF
2007–08	Indian Bank
2008–09	Nethaji SC[21][22]
2009–10	Chennai Customs
2010–11	AGORC
2011–12	Chennai Customs[23]
2012–13	Arrows
2013–14	ICF
2014–15	Hindustan Eagles[24]
2015–16	Disputed[5]
2016–17	Chennai City
2017–18	Indian Bank[25][26]
2018–21	League suspended (CFA-TNFA dispute)
2021–22	Viva Chennai
2022–23	Swaraj FC[27]

See also

• Tamil Nadu Football Association
• All India Sevens Football

References

1. "Regaining lost ground". The Hindu. 28 October 2014. Archived from the original on 27 February 2023. Retrieved 12 July 2023.
2. "CFA Senior Division". The Away End. Archived from the original on 30 May 2022. Retrieved 31 May 2022.
3. "CFA league: ICF beats Nethaji FC 2–1". dtnext.in. Chennai: DTNEXT Bureau. 5 June 2023. Archived from the original on 12 July 2023. Retrieved 12 July 2023.
4. "Local football: Swaraj beats Nethaji 2–0". dtnext.in. Chennai: DTNEXT Bureau. 10 June 2023. Archived from the original on 12 July 2023. Retrieved 12 July 2023.
5. Muralidharan, Ashwin (1 May 2018). "All you need to know about the league structure in Tamil Nadu". Goal.com. Archived from the original on 22 April 2021. Retrieved 10 May 2022.
6. Venkatesan, S. Prasanna (7 May 2018). "The lost glory of Chennai's football league". sportstar.thehindu.com. Sportstar. Archived from the original on 16 August 2021.
7. Keeda, Sports (19 March 2013). "Football in Chennai - On a slippery surface". Archived from the original on 2 April 2019. Retrieved 16 August 2021.
8. Musings, Madras. "Snippets from the MUC's Centenary Souvenir".
9. V, Sriram (19 June 2014). "When football came to Madras". The Hindu. Archived from the original on 11 May 2022. Retrieved 11 May 2022.
10. Muralidharan, Ashwin (23 July 2020). "Impasse between Chennai FA and Tamil Nadu FA hampering the football ecosystem in the state". Goal.com. Archived from the original on 10 May 2022. Retrieved 10 May 2022.
11. Sheelan, Guna (23 April 2018). "Tamil Nadu: How Indian football's next powerhouse is being held back by bureaucratic wrangles". Khel Now. Archived from the original on 10 May 2022. Retrieved 10 May 2022.
12. Shrivathsan, S (12 May 2022). "Look at the bright side: Vijayan, Edwin on CFA League's resumption". DT Next. Archived from the original on 12 May 2022. Retrieved 2 June 2022.
13. Frederick, Prince (23 June 2016). "Wimco's comeback moment, and the year after". The Hindu. Archived from the original on 10 May 2022. Retrieved 10 May 2022.
14. Frederick, Prince (26 April 2011). "Memories of Madras - Football's field day". The Hindu. Archived from the original on 11 October 2022. Retrieved 11 May 2022.
15. Arunava, Chaudhuri. "List of Champions of the Chennai Football League". indianfootball.de. Archived from the original on 3 May 2018. Retrieved 2 March 2021.
16. Arunava, Chaudhuri. "1996/97 Season in Indian Football". indianfootball.de. Indian Football Network. Archived from the original on 29 October 2021. Retrieved 2 March 2021.
17. India regional tournaments 1997/98 Archived 23 July 2020 at the Wayback Machine. Rsssf. Retrieved 16 August 2021.
18. Arunava Chaudhuri. "2003/04 Season in Indian Football". indianfootball.de. Indian Football Network. Archived from the original on 17 January 2020. Retrieved 2 March 2021.
19. "India 2004 Regional Championships". RSSSF. Archived from the original on 11 February 2021. Retrieved 18 February 2021.
20. "India 2005 Regional Championships". RSSSF. Archived from the original on 30 April 2021. Retrieved 18 February 2021.
21. "Nethaji Football Club has a new owner". www.thehindu.com. The Hindu. 14 December 2013. Archived from the original on 8 April 2014. Retrieved 19 March 2021.
22. "Seeking fresh challenges". sportstar.thehindu.com. Chennai: Sportstar. 21 February 2009. Archived from the original on 5 December 2023. Retrieved 5 December 2023.
23. "Customs Blank CFC in Senior Division League". The New Indian Express. 27 January 2012. Archived from the original on 11 May 2022. Retrieved 11 May 2022.
24. "Hindustan Eagles emerges champion". The Hindu. 1 May 2015. Archived from the original on 11 October 2022. Retrieved 11 May 2022.
25. "Indian Bank emerges victorious in CFA league". dtnext.in. 28 April 2018. Archived from the original on 22 April 2021. Retrieved 18 February 2021.
26. Krishnan, Vivek (27 April 2018). "CFA League: Pravitto brace gives Indian Bank title". timesofindia.indiatimes.com. The Times of India. TNN. Archived from the original on 16 May 2022. Retrieved 18 February 2021.
27. "CFA league: Kamalesh sizzles in Indian Bank win". DT Next. 16 June 2023. Archived from the original on 12 July 2023. Retrieved 12 July 2023.