ISL 2019-20 | Kerala Blasters to face ATK in season opener

08/23/2019

After prolonged planning and persistent uncertainty, the Indian Super League has finally announced their fixtures for the upcoming season, with star-studded Kerala Blasters hosting two-time champions ATK in the season opener on October 23. There will be a 10-day international break from November 10.

The sixth edition of the Indian Super League, which is now the top-tier football league in the country with an AFC Champions League spot to claim, would kickoff at the Jawaharlal Nehru international stadium in Kochi. The first match would be just a reverse fixture of the opener from last season where Kerala had visited Kolkata to play.

Defending champions Bengaluru FC would be playing the second match of the season against NorthEast United in their backyard on October 21. BFC had beaten the Highlanders in the playoffs and would still remain the favourite this time with NorthEast United getting depleted in the off season.

The third match would be between Jamshedpur FC and Delhi Dynamos. Of course, with Dynamos shifting base to Odisha, their name could potentially change. It would be followed by two-time champions Chennaiyin FC taking on FC Goa at the Fatourda.

Mumbai City FC, who had reached the play-offs last year, would be facing Kerala Blasters in Kochi on October 24, while FC Pune City would be travelling to Kolkata to face ATK the following day. Like last season, this season will also have 90 matches in the league stage, which would go on for four months till February 23, 2020.

The only international break in the first half would be from November 10 to November 23. All the matches would be starting from at 7:30 pm IST.