2008–09 I-League
The I-League 2008–2009 season began on 26 September 2008 and finished on 16 April 2009 with a break in December for the Federation Cup and Durand Cup. Most games this season were played on Saturday's and Sunday's to attract larger crowds. After a successful first season for the I League, the second season featured 12 teams from four cities – again this would be expanded in the 2009–10 season to 14 teams.
The champion in the I-League qualified for the AFC Champions League 2010 qualifying playoffs in 2010, while the bottom two teams were relegated to I-League 2nd Division for the next season.
Gallery
Teams
| Club | Manager | Location | Stadia |
| Air India |  Bimal Ghosh | Mumbai | Cooperage Ground |
| Churchill Brothers SC |  Karim Bencharifa | Goa | Jawaharlal Nehru – Fatorda Stadium |
| Dempo SC | Armando Colaco | Goa | Jawaharlal Nehru – Fatorda Stadium |
| East Bengal | Monoranjan Bhattacharya | Kolkata | Salt Lake Stadium |
| JCT FC | Sukhvinder Singh | New Delhi | Ambedkar Stadium |
| Mahindra United | Derrick Pereira | Mumbai | Cooperage Ground |
| Mohammedan S.C | Shabbir Ali | Kolkata | Salt Lake Stadium |
| Mohun Bagan |  Carlos Roberto Pereira Da Silva | Kolkata | Salt Lake Stadium |
| Sporting Clube De Goa |  Cliffort Chukwama | Goa | Jawaharlal Nehru – Fatorda Stadium |
| Vasco S.C. | Goa | Jawaharlal Nehru – Fatorda Stadium |
League table
Home and away season
Round 1
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Round 2
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Round 3
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Round 4
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Round 5
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Round 6
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Round 7
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Round 8
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Round 9
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Round 10
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Round 12
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Round 13
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Round 14
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Round 15
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Round 16
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Round 17
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Round 18
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Round 19
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Round 20
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Round 21
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Round 22
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Top scorers
| Rank | Scorer | Club | Goals |
| 1 | Odafe Onyeka Okolie | Churchill Brothers SC | 24 |
| 2 | Jose Ramirez Barreto | Mohun Bagan | 10 |
| 2 | Felix Chimaokwu | Churchill Brothers SC | 10 |
| 4 |  Sunil Chhetri | East Bengal Club | 9 |
| 4 | Ranty Martins Soleye | Dempo SC | 9 |
| 4 | Chidi Edeh | Mahindra United | 9 |
| 4 |  Yusif Yakubu | East Bengal Club | 9 |
| 8 | Singam Subash Singh | Air India | 7 |
| 8 | Sushil Kumar Singh | Mahindra United | 7 |
| 8 | Kalia Kulothungan | Mumbai FC | 7 |
| 8 | Junior Obagbemiro | Sporting Clube de Goa | 7 |
| 12 | Baichung Bhutia | Mohan Bagan | 6 |
| 12 | Ogba Kalu Nnanna | Churchill Brothers SC | 6 |
| 12 | Joseph Pereira | Sporting Clube de Goa | 6 |