Mohun Bagan asks for a change in the location for ACL 2 Clash vs Sepahan; Writes to Aiff for the quota of foreigners in Super Cup

The government of the Indian Super League champion Mohun Bagan Super Giant has asked the Asian football confederation to move its AFC Champions League Two (ACL 2) setup against Sepahan SC from Iran, with reference to safety problems.

The club has already applied for Visa and hit travel packages, but uncertainty continues to exist about the participation of foreigners, Tom Aldred, Dimitri Petratos, Jamie Maclaren and Jason Cummings, because subjects from the VK and Australia are confronted with extra limitations in Iran.

Sepahan manager, Mir Salehian,, however, claimed that there was no problem. «Visa have been issued to every member of Mohun Bagan Squad, including their foreign players. There is no problem on our part,» he said.

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The Mariners, who lost their ACL 2 opener to Ahal FK in the Salt Lake Stadium here on 16 September, clarified that they did not refuse to travel, but want the AFC to tackle their concerns.

Not popping up can lead to serious sanctions and endanger the future participation of Indian clubs in ACL 2. Last season Mumbai City FC was forced to play in Tehran without important foreigners.

Mohun Bagan is now confronted with two back-to-back-way matches against Sepahan on September 30 and Jordan’s Al Hussain on October 21.

Super Cup Stance

Mohun Bagan also wrote to the All India Football Federation (AIFF) prior to the coming Super Cup and asked the organizers to limit the quota of foreign players to four instead of the proposed six.

It is learned that the Federation is planning to enable clubs to register and fill to six foreigners in this year’s edition. In response, Mohun Bagan insisted on a cap of four to guarantee more opportunities for the Indians.

The Federation had previously allowed six foreigners in the competition, especially since the best domestic players from different ISL were gone on national service.

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In his letter, Mohun Bagan cited the earlier comments from Aiff President Kalyan Chaubey to support their attitude. Chaubey had said that reducing the number of foreigners in domestic competitions would benefit the national team, and the club repeated this in their letter.

Earlier this month, East Bengal had also written the federation that sought clarity about the rule.

The group recording of the Super Cup is planned to be kept almost on Thursday. The actual tournament starts on October 25 in Goa.

The Super Cup winner deserves a berth in the AFC Champions League 2 qualifications for the 2026-27 season.

Published on September 24, 2025