Defending champions East Bengal FC headline the eight-team IWL 2026-27 season, which begins November 13 across three cities, with HOPS FC and Juba Sangha FC promoted to the top division.
Kolkata, October 20: The countdown to another season of Indian Women’s League has begun. IWL will return on November 13, not in centralized venue but with three different city , with eight clubs set to battle for the title across Kolkata, Jamshedpur and Bengaluru.
The 2026-27 season will see defending champions East Bengal FC return to the competition as the team to beat after an impressive campaign last season. Alongside the familiar contenders, two newly promoted sides will bring fresh competition to the country’s top-tier women’s club football league.
East Bengal, Sethu FC, Kickstart FC, Nita Football Academy, Gokulam Kerala FC and BBFS Garhwal United Football Club will continue in the top division. They will be joined by HOPS FC and Juba Sangha FC, who secured promotion after finishing first and second, respectively, in IWL 2 during the 2025-26 season.
East Bengal will enter the new campaign with the pressure and expectation that come with being champions. Their previous season was marked by consistency, as they registered 13 wins and suffered only one defeat. The Moshal Girls will now look to carry that form into the new campaign and establish their dominance once again.
The previous season also highlighted the attacking quality within the league. East Bengal Women’s Fazila Ikwaput finished as the leading scorer with 20 goals, playing a key role in the champions’ successful campaign. Nita Football Academy’s Pyari Xaxa and Sethu FC’s Lynda Kom were among the other standout attacking players, underlining the competition for goals across the division.
Beyond the battle for the trophy, the upcoming season also marks a new phase in the league’s commercial development. The All India Football Federation (AIFF) and Capri Sports are working together following their 15-year partnership covering the commercial development and marketing rights of both the IWL and IWL 2.
For Capri Sports, the new season represents the beginning of its involvement in the league, with a focus on improving its visibility and creating better opportunities for clubs and players.
Apurv Gupta, Head of Contact Sports at Capri Sports, said the organisation sees significant potential in Indian women’s football. He highlighted the importance of building a stronger platform for players, increasing the league’s reach and creating an environment in which clubs and footballers can grow.
AIFF Deputy Secretary General M. Satyanarayan also emphasised the league’s role in developing women’s football in India. He noted that IWL and IWL 2 together provide a competitive structure through which players and clubs can progress, while creating more opportunities for women footballers across the country.
With eight clubs, three host cities and two promoted teams joining the contest, the new season offers another opportunity for established sides to protect their standing and emerging clubs to make their presence felt. For East Bengal Women’s, however, the immediate challenge is clear: turning last season’s title-winning form into another successful campaign.
The action begins on November 13, as Indian women’s club football prepares for its next chapter.
Read more about Indian Football
