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Indian Super League outfit Hyderbad FC owners are reportedly planning to move their base to Delhi from next season onwards. According to IFTWC reports, Hyderabad FC owners BC Jindal Group are looking for the formulas and regulations to move away from Hyderabad and from next season the club may participate with a brand-new avatar based in Delhi.
Hyderabad FC in the ISL
Hyderabad FC was formed in 2019 to replace FC Pune City as it was financially struggling. The Pune-based franchise was disbanded in 2019 and Hyderabad FC was announced to step into the Indian Football map from the 2019-20 season.
However, the soft rebranding of the entity did not reflect in their performance as they could not perform well in the first two seasons. Hyderabad finished last in their debut ISL season under Phil Brown who was also the last coach of FC Pune City. The current Indian national team head coach Manolo Marquez was appointed as the head coach of Hyderabad but he also could not deliver the expected result. Hyderabad finished 5th in the 2020-21 season and missed the ISL play-offs by a slight difference of points.
In the 2021-22 season, Hyderabad FC achieved the coveted ISL trophy under Manolo Marquez beating Kerala Blasters on penalties to be the ISL cup winners.
The woes of financial struggles and disastrous performance of the Hyderabad side since the start of last season continued and it was uncertain for them to participate in this season's ISL. However, BC Jindal Group took over the club in August 2024 and cleared all the financial issues.
The relocation
The interest in relocation from the new owners of Hyderabad FC may not be as unexpected as it seems. The owners, BC Jindal Group have shown interest in buying a franchise in Indian Football in the past as well.
In June 2023, AIFF asked for bids to launch two new I-League teams. Inter Kashi and Namdhari SC were finalized from all the corporate bids, but the bid submitted by Concatenate Advest for the Delhi franchise could not compete due to finances. The Concatenate Advest Pvt. Ltd. is owned by BC Jindal Group and they submitted the bid for the Delhi franchise along with TVS Motors.
As the company and the conglomerate that owns Hyderabad FC are located in New Delhi, the plan to relocate is not as unpredictable as it seems.
Delhi Dynamos FC, the former ISL franchise that relocated to Odisha and came out as Odisha FC, was the last club to take part in the ISL from the capital of India. However, Punjab FC currently play their home matches in the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in New Delhi. The officials will have to find a solution for these issues as well. The local talents of Hyderabad might not get the expected care anymore, which might be a bad advertisement for Indian Football.