Dempo Sports Club sealed their place in next season's I-League, after pipping Minerva Academy FC to the second division title. Goals from Milagres Gonsalves and Felix Chidi gave Dempo a 3-1 win, with victory ensuring Dempo topped the division with 23 points; Minerva finished second, with 18.
Dempo, who needed just a point to qualify, went ahead after nine minutes, as Gonsalves headed in following a long ball from Mandar Rao Desai. Chidi doubled the lead four minutes later with a solo effort, as Minerva struggled to settle down in the early stages.
Dempo, who dominated possession and created chance after chance, killed the game off just before half-time, as Chidi ran past Amandeep Singh and sent a loopy ball into the path of Gonsalves, who converted with ease. The team could have added a fourth before the interval, but Mandar Rao Desai's grounded effort just went wide of the post.
For the second half, Minerva's coach Surinder Singh introduced Nitesh Chhikara in place of Kamalpreet Singh to shape up the defence. However, Dempo themselves did not offer much in attack, instead choosing to just press high up on the field to maintain their lead.
Minerva, who enjoyed more of the ball in the second half, were finally rewarded for upping their tempo, as Amandeep Singh scored a consolation goal in the 86th minute, thanks to a heavy deflection from Shallum Pires.
After the game, Sunando Dhar, the CEO of the I-League, presented the trophy to Dempo and welcomed "one of the leading sides of Indian football" back to the top division.