The Super League Kerala kicks off its second season today at the EMS Stadium in Kozhikode, marking a new chapter in Kerala football.
In the opening match, reigning champions Calicut FC will face second-placed Force Kochi FC. The league will last for two and a half months, featuring a total of 33 matches, including the finals.
On October 2, starting at 6 PM, various cultural performances led by Vedan will take place. Club owners, film stars, political leaders, and Kerala Football Association officials will attend the event. The opening match is scheduled to start at 8 PM.
Teams from the first season, including Kannur Warriors FC, Calicut FC, Malappuram FC, Thrissur Magic FC, Force Kochi FC, and Thiruvananthapuram Comets FC, will compete in this second season.
While the first season featured four venues, this time there are eight. Kannur and Thrissur will have their own home grounds. The Kannur Jawaharlal Stadium and the Thrissur Corporation Stadium will serve as home grounds for their respective teams. Force Kochi FC, which played its home matches last season at the Kaloor Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, will now play at the Ernakulam Maharajas Ground. Three new venues have been prepared for the matches.
EMF Stadium in Kozhikode (home team: Calicut FC), Manchery Payyanad Stadium (home team: Malappuram FC), and Thiruvananthapuram Chandrasekharan Nair Stadium (home team: Thiruvananthapuram Comets) will host matches as before.
The Super League Kerala matches will follow a home-and-away format. The top four teams will qualify for the semifinals, leading to the grand finale on December 14.
All matches will be broadcast on Sony Sports Network. Sports.com will provide free live streaming worldwide.
Participants include 150 Indian players, 36 international players, and over 100 Malayalis in the second edition of Super League Kerala.
This season features 186 footballers, including 150 Indian players across six teams, with 100 being from Kerala. There are also 50 players from other states and 36 international players from Latin America, Europe, and Africa.
Notable foreign players, such as Luis Ángel Rodríguez (Force Kochi), Roy Krishna, John Kennedy (Malappuram FC), Sebastian Lukami (Calicut FC), Mailson Alves (Thrissur FC), Adrian Serdineiro (Kannur Warriors), and Patrick Mott (Thiruvananthapuram Comets) are set to make an impact in the league.
Several standout Indian players, including Salam Ranjan Singh (Thiruvananthapuram Comets), Michael Sousa Raj (Force Kochi), Ghani Ahmed Nigham (Malappuram FC), Prashant K (Calicut FC), and Leni Rodrigues (Thrissur Magic FC), will also take part in Super League Kerala this season.
The competition will also feature a clash of coaching talent, with Spanish coach Miguel Coral Torreira of Malappuram FC and Russian coach Andrey Chernyshov of Thrissur Magic FC facing off.