Mumbai, June 12: The SFL Football League Mumbai has successfully concluded its 2025–26 season, bringing Season 2 of one of the city’s grassroots football competitions to a close and celebrating champions across boys’ and girls’ categories at its Grand Finale Awards Ceremony. With the full slate of age groups now complete, the season finale recognised the players, teams and coaches whose performances defined the campaign. The younger categories Under-8, Under-10 and Under-12 were concluded earlier in March, with the remaining boys’ and girls’ categories now completed to round off the season.
Spanning nine months of competition, Season 2 drew more than 2,000 participants, 200-plus teams and over 50 clubs across its age groups, delivering consistent match exposure, real competitive pressure and a professionally managed tournament environment for boys and girls developing through Mumbai’s football ecosystem. The conclusion of Season 2 follows the successful completion of the inaugural SFL Football League Pune season last month, reinforcing the league’s growing footprint as a structured, multi-city grassroots platform.
Grand Finale Awards Ceremony
The season culminated in a Grand Finale Awards Ceremony attended by Steven Dias, former Indian international footballer and current Coach of Jamshedpur FC, who joined as Chief Guest to honour the season’s top performers and champion teams. One of the most accomplished names in Indian football, Dias presented honours to the campaign’s winners and runners-up and spent time with the young athletes, underlining the value of regular, organised competition in a player’s early development.
The ceremony celebrated standout players, winning teams and the coaches whose work through the season shaped the quality of football on display — closing out the campaign with a moment of recognition for everyone involved.
Season Finale — Results
The concluding finals across the older categories produced closely contested matches and showcased the depth of talent emerging through the league.
Sub Junior Boys
Winner: Dsouza Football Academy
Runner-Up: Conscient Sports
Junior Boys
Winner: MH Oranje FC
Runner-Up: Dsouza Football Academy
U14 Girls
Winner: Young Guns FC
Runner-Up: Shivajians FC
U17 Girls
Winner: Young Guns FC
Runner-Up: Bravo FC
The Value of Long-Term Competitive Exposure
The SFL Football League is built to address a persistent gap in Indian youth football: the shortage of consistent, structured competition between academy training and elite selection. Over a full season, players gain repeated match exposure, experience genuine competitive pressure, and develop within a fixture-based format with standings, match officials and a professional matchday experience. For many young athletes, this sustained exposure — rather than one-off tournaments is what builds the composure, decision-making and resilience that underpin long-term development.
By completing categories from the Under-8s through to the U17 Girls in the same season, the league offers a continuous pathway across age groups, allowing players to progress within a familiar, organised environment as they grow.
“We run this as a long league for a reason because that’s how players actually develop,” added Medda. “Every match is live-streamed and every player’s statistics are captured through the season, so a child can go back, watch their games and see how they’re progressing over time. That record of growth, built match by match across a full season, is far more meaningful for a young player’s development than any single result.”
Mumbai and Pune A Growing League Footprint
The conclusion of Season 2 in Mumbai, alongside the recently completed inaugural Pune season, reflects SFL’s steady expansion of structured youth football across cities. Each new edition gives more young players access to a full season of competitive football, organised fixtures and a clear pathway to develop as they move up the age groups. Together, the Mumbai and Pune leagues are widening the opportunities available to grassroots footballers — and SFL intends to extend that reach to more players and more cities in the seasons ahead.
Founder’s Note
“Young players don’t develop through one tournament or one standout performance,” said Sourjyendu Medda, Founder, SFL. “They develop through repetition, competition, and the experience of playing meaningful matches over time. That’s what a full season gives them — not just a few games, but a real run of fixtures where they learn to handle pressure and keep improving. Completing the full Mumbai season across both boys’ and girls’ categories, alongside the inaugural Pune season, is a real step towards giving more young footballers that kind of sustained competition. For us, it always comes back to the players and the long road from grassroots football to higher levels of the game.”
Looking Ahead
With Mumbai’s second season now complete and Pune’s inaugural season behind it, SFL continues to position itself at the centre of India’s emerging grassroots football ecosystem. The organisation remains committed to structured, professionally run leagues and to building clear development pathways that connect grassroots competition to the wider game. The SFL Football League will return for its next editions with expanded participation and additional categories under consideration.