Total 20 teams
A total of 20 teams will participate in the 2022 Durant Cup Football. In addition to the 11 teams from the ISL, five clubs from the I-League and four from the Indian Armed Forces are participating in the Durant Cup. The 131st edition of the Durant Cup, the oldest football tournament in Asia, will take place this year. The Durant Cup will be contested in three states namely West Bengal, Manipur and Assam. ISL club FC Goa are the reigning champions. Goa’s title was won by defeating I-League club Mohammedan Sporting.
Kerala Blasters group
Kerala Blasters FC is in Group D. Army Green will join ISL clubs Odisha FC, North East United FC and I-League club Sudeva Delhi in Group D. All Group D matches will be played at the Indira Gandhi Stadium in Assam. The top two teams from the group will enter the quarters. ISL powerhouses Odisha FC and North East United FC are likely to pose a tough challenge to Kerala Blasters FC.
Things are favorable for North East
In their favor is the fact that all the group matches are played at the Indira Gandhi Stadium in Gohti, the home ground of North East United FC. Sudeva Delhi FC is a team that finished only 11th in the 2021-2022 I-League season. Army Green is the winning team of 2016 Durant Cup. Army Green, the Indian Army football team, defeated I-League club Neroca FC in the 2016 Durant Cup Final.
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Death group
Group A qualifies as the death group. Because ISL giants Bengaluru FC, FC Goa and Jamshedpur FC are lined up in Group A. Apart from this, Group A will feature I-League powerhouses Muhammadan SC and Indian Air Force. Group A matches will be played at Salt Lake Stadium, Kishore Bharti Stadium and Naihati Stadium in Kolkata.
ATK playing group
ATK Mohun Bagan vs East Bengal, the Kolkata derby, will be played in Group B. The giants in the group are ATK Mohun Bagan and Mumbai City FC. Group B will feature Indian Navy and I-League club Rajasthan United. Group B matches will also be played at Salt Lake Stadium, Kishore Bharti Stadium and Naihati Stadium.
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Group C
Group C consists of ISL teams Chennaiyin FC and Hyderabad FC, followed by I-League clubs Neroca, Tro and army team Army Red. The matches are played at the Khuman Lampak Mani Stadium in Imphal. It is home to Neroca and Tro.