The National Football Championship for Santosh Trophy, due to ties with FIFA, also known as the FIFA Santosh Trophy, or simply Santosh Trophy, is an semi professional inter-state national football competition contested by the state associations and government institutions under the All India Football Federation (AIFF), the sport's governing body in India. Before the launch of the first national club league, the National Football League in 1996, the Santosh Trophy was considered the top domestic tournament in India. Many players who have represented India internationally have played in the Santosh Trophy. The tournament is held every year with eligible teams who are divided into zones, must play in the qualifying round and can progress into the tournament proper.
The EMS Stadium, located in Kozhikode, Kerala, India, is a multi-purpose stadium primarily used for football matches. The stadium most recently was home to the I-League team Gokulam Kerala FC, as well as their IWL women's team. Built in 1977, the stadium hosts 50,000 spectators. It is named after the first Chief Minister of Kerala E. M. S. Namboodiripad. The stadium has played host to several important football tournaments, such as Super Cup, Santhosh Trophy, and Sait Nagjee Football tournament. Gokulam Kerala has been playing their home matches at the EMS Stadium since 2017 and has had a successful run at the stadium winning their first I-League home match against East Bengal FC with a score of 2–1. The stadium is considered a historic and important venue for football in the region.
The Super Cup is an annual football competition and the premier cup competition in men's domestic football in India. It was founded on February 19, 2018 as a replacement for Federation Cup. Organised by the All India Football Federation (AIFF), the competition is open to all clubs in the Indian Super League and the I-League, the top two division of the Indian football league system respectively.
Kerala United Football Club is an Indian professional football club based in Malappuram, Kerala, that competes in I-League 3, fourth tier of the Indian football league system.
Malappuram District Sports Complex Stadium is a multi-purpose stadium in Kerala, India, located about 7 km from Manjeri and 12 km from Malappuram. The stadium has a capacity of 30,000 spectators. Opened in 2013, it is part of the Malappuram District Sports Complex & Football Academy, under the management of Malappuram District Sports Council.
The Indian Women's League is the women's top tier professional football league in India. Founded in 2016, currently a total of 7 teams from across the country participate in the league.
Thaivalappil Mohammed Irshad is an Indian professional footballer who plays as a centre back for I-League club Mohammedan.
Grace Dangmei is an Indian professional footballer who plays as a forward for the Indian Women's League side Gokulam Kerala and the India women's national team. She was part of the team at the 2014 Asian Games and at the 2016 South Asian Games where she scored two goals against Sri Lanka. During the 2016 SAFF Women's Championship, she scored a goal in the first half of the final, helping India clinch its fourth consecutive title at the tournament.
Bino George Chiramal Padinjarathala is an Indian professional manager (coach) and former footballer. He was the East Bengal assistant coach to Stephen Constantine for the Indian Super League. He is currently coaching the reserve teams.
Gokulam Kerala Football Club is an Indian professional football club based in Kozhikode, Kerala. Founded in 2017, the club competes in the I-League, the second tier of Indian football league system. They won the 2020–21 I-League title to become the first club from Kerala to do so, and became the first team to defend the league title in 2021–22. Gokulam is also the first and so far the only club from the state to qualify for a continental competition, AFC Cup, in 2022.
Kerala Blasters Football Club Reserves and Academy, also known as Kerala Blasters B, are the reserve team and academy of the Kochi based Indian Super League club Kerala Blasters. The reserve team of the Blasters most recently competed in the Kerala Premier League, the top division of Kerala football and the RF Development League. The club's youth system consists of three teams, Under-17, Under-15 and Under-13 age groups that competes in their respective age divisions of the Ernakulam District Youth League. The youth teams of the Blasters has previously played in the Elite League, the top tier of the youth football system in India.
Gokulam Kerala FC Women is an Indian women's football section of Gokulam Kerala FC. They participated in Indian Women's League (IWL), the premier women's football league in India. They won the first IWL In 2019–20. They then retained the title in 2021–22 and 2022–23. In 2021, they became the first club to represent India in AFC Women's Club Championship.
Manisha Kalyan is an Indian professional footballer who plays as a forward for Greek A Division club PAOK and the India women's national team. She won the 2020–21 AIFF Women's Emerging Footballer of the Year and the 2022–23 AIFF Women's Player of the Year awards. She is the first Indian footballer to play in the UEFA Women's Champions League.
Bidyashagar Singh Khangembam is an Indian professional footballer who plays as a striker.
Danish Farooq Bhat is an Indian professional footballer who plays as a central midfielder for Indian Super League club Kerala Blasters.
East Bengal FC Women, commonly referred to as East Bengal, is a women's football club based in Kolkata, West Bengal. It is the women's football section of East Bengal FC. They compete in the Indian Women's League, the women's premier football league in India. They are also the reigning Kanyashree Cup champions, the top-flight tournament of women's football in the state of West Bengal under the Indian Football Association.
Jithin Madathil Subran is an Indian professional footballer who plays as a winger for Indian Super League club NorthEast United.
Bijoy Varghese is an Indian professional footballer who plays as a centre back for Indian Super League club Kerala Blasters.
Noufal PN is an Indian professional footballer from Kerala. He plays as a winger for the Indian Super League club Mumbai City.
Shreya Hooda is an Indian professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for Odisha in the Indian Women's League and the India women's national football team. She is a member of the Indian squad at the 2022 Asian Games, that went on to compete in Hangzhou, the People's Republic of China, in September 2023.
