The 2024-25 ISL season has reached its business end, with around a month of league stage fixtures left before the playoffs commence in mid-March.
It has been a competitive season, as this league always seems to produce. As it stands, the 13 teams have all played at least 19 of their allotted 24 league games, and only Mohammedan SC are out of contention for the playoffs. MSC have only managed 11 points from 19 games, in what has turned into a troubled debut ISL campaign.
For the other 12 teams, there is all to play for in the next month, although that could change for a couple of teams, who need more than just a miracle for them to make it to the playoffs. Here's how each team stands at the moment, and their potential route to the playoffs:
#1 Mohun Bagan Super Giant
Current Points: 46 in 20 games
Goal Difference: +25
The best team in the league are assured of a place in the playoffs. They need just six points from four games to mathematically confirm their retention of the league shield.
Remaining Matches: Kerala Blasters (A), Odisha FC (H), Mumbai City (A), FC Goa (H)
#2 FC Goa
Current Points: 36 in 19 games
Goal Difference: +11
A month or so ago, FC Goa fans may have looked at that last league away to Bagan as a shield-decider, but Bagan have just been way too good. The shield is all but gone for Goa, but their remaining games are no less important. They will love to finish second in the league, but also Marquez knows that his side cannot lose momentum before they go into the playoffs.
Remaining Matches: Mumbai City (A), Kerala Blasters (H), Punjab FC (A), Mohammedan SC (H), Mohun Bagan (A)
#3 Jamshedpur FC
Current Points: 34 in 19 games
Goal Difference: -2
Just a couple of weeks ago, there was a thought that Jamshedpur could be the ones to really push Bagan for the shield. Losses to Hyderabad and Bengaluru have snuffed that thought out. They should still make the playoffs, but Khalid Jamil's sights will be set on leapfrogging FC Goa into second place, so that they avoid the knockout playoff and directly go into the semifinals. Their run-in is anything but straightforward, though, with trips to Kochi and Chennai to contend with.
Remaining Matches: NorthEast United (H), Mohammedan SC (A), Kerala Blasters (A), Odisha FC (H), Chennaiyin FC (A)
#4 Bengaluru FC
Current Points: 31 in 20 games
Goal Difference: +8
That win against Jamshedpur at the Kanteerava came at the perfect time for Bengaluru. They'd gotten just a point from six games before that one, so it was a significant result against a team above them on the table. They've been excellent at the Kanteerava this season and have two home games left. If they win both those games, then they should be in the playoffs. They'll be looking to finish third or fourth, so that they guarantee themselves a playoff match at the Kanteerava.
Remaining Matches: NorthEast United (A), Chennaiyin FC (H), East Bengal (A), Mumbai City FC (H)
#5 Mumbai City FC
Current Points: 31 in 19 games
Goal Difference: +2 Mumbai City have struggled to score goals all season. Only the bottom three have scored fewer than them. However, only Mohun Bagan have conceded less than they have. Petr Kratky has found a way to win games, and they're building a head of steam at the right time in the season. They've got tough games coming up, as Goa and Bagan visit Mumbai before trips to Kochi and Bengaluru. They might just have done enough in their recent games to have their spot in the top six secure.
Remaining Matches: FC Goa (H), Hyderabad FC (A), Mohun Bagan (H), Kerala Blasters (A), Bengaluru FC (A)
#6 NorthEast United FC
Current Points: 29 in 20 games
Goal Difference: +10
How far could they have dreamt if they somehow found some steel and solidity to complement the phenom that Alaaeddine Ajaraie has been this season? The Moroccan has had arguably the greatest individual season in ISL history - and that deserved to be fighting for bigger honours rather than clinging on to a playoff spot. The games against Jamshedpur and Bengaluru will be critical for NorthEast. If they don't get a positive result in either, it would leave them under pressure from those breathing down their necks heading into the last two games of the season.
Remaining Matches: Jamshedpur FC (A), Bengaluru FC (H), Chennaiyin FC (A), East Bengal (H)
#7 Odisha FC
Current Points: 26 in 20 games
Goal Difference: +5
Their season has been a peculiar one, but not particularly difficult to describe. The average age of their foreigners has caught up with them this season. This hasn't been the lively, attacking Sergio Lobera side we've seen for years in the ISL and that drop in pace and intensity has been seen in their results. They're by no means out of contention, with NorthEast United in sixth just three points away, and games against both the bottom two still to come. However, they might be in a position where they will need a result on their trip to Jamshedpur for their last league game of the season. Given how Jamil's side have played, especially at home this season, that's not a position Lobera will want to find himself in.
Remaining Matches: Hyderabad FC (H), Mohun Bagan (A), Mohammedan SC (H), Jamshedpur FC (A)
#8 Kerala Blasters
Current Points: 24 in 19 games
Goal Difference: 0
When Mikael Stahre was sacked, even the most optimistic Blasters fan may not have predicted that they'd be five points off the playoff spots (with a game in hand) with five games left to play. They've given themselves a chance, which is a credit to the work that Thomas Tchorz and TG Purushothaman have done as caretaker coaches. It's going to be a tough run-in for the Blasters - they face four of the current top five in the last five games. That away game in Hyderabad is a good chance to get three points, but they'll need to produce some big results before that for that game to be of any consequence.
Remaining Matches: Mohun Bagan (H), FC Goa (A), Jamshedpur FC (H), Mumbai City FC (H), Hyderabad FC (A)
Punjab FC
Current Points: 24 in 19 games
Goal Difference: -2
A season that began so promisingly for Punjab has gone a little pear-shaped and now they really don't have much momentum on their side, with five games to go. They're still very much in the race mathematically - just five points off sixth with a game in hand. Of the teams around them they seem to have the easiest run-in, so if they can go on a run, they might be the team that threaten the current top six.
Remaining Matches: Chennaiyin FC (A), East Bengal (H), FC Goa (H), Hyderabad FC (A), Mohammedan SC (A)
#10 Chennaiyin FC
Current Points: 21 in 20 games
Goal Difference: -5
Last season's excellent playoff run and what looked like a good summer transfer window hasn't translated to on-pitch results for Owen Coyle and Chennaiyin. They only recently broke a seven-match winless run - one in which they let multiple winning positions slip. They will live to regret those games against Mohammedan away and Odisha at home, come the end of the season. Wins in those instead of draws would've just left four points off sixth place right now, instead of the eight points they find themselves behind by.
Remaining Matches: Punjab FC (H), Bengaluru FC (A), NorthEast United (H), Jamshedpur FC (H)
East Bengal
Current Points: 18 in 19 games
Goal Difference: -8
At no point in this season has it felt like East Bengal have ever clearly threatened the top six positions. The possibility now is mathematical, but they need a miracle. They need to win all their five remaining games, and hope for monumental slips from multiple teams above them. It is very likely that their wait for a first ISL playoff appearance is likely to continue for another season at least.
Remaining Matches: Mohammedan SC (A), Punjab FC (A), Hyderabad FC (H), Bengaluru FC (H), NorthEast United (A)
Hyderabad FC
Current Points: 16 in 19 games
Goal Difference: -19
It's been a tough season for Hyderabad, even if it has been better than last season. They've had their moments, like the win away in Kerala and at home against Jamshedpur. But as it stands, they are only slenderly in the playoff hunt. It is possible mathematically, but it probably won't happen. If NorthEast get two more points and Mumbai City FC get one more point, Hyderabad will be confirmed to be out of contention.
Remaining Matches: Odisha FC (A), Mumbai City FC (H), East Bengal (A), Punjab FC (H), Kerala Blasters (H)