The Durand Cup, established in 1888, is Asia's oldest football tournament and the fifth-oldest globally, making it one of the most prestigious competitions. Although it may have lost some of its former glories in the Indian football circuit, this trophy remains highly coveted by clubs seeking to establish their own history and become part of its legacy. 38 unique sides have already lifted the title, with more new winners getting the taste of the trophy after ISL sides joined the contest from 2019. The Durand Cup has recently become the first trophy contested in the Indian football season, taking place before the league begins. This has increased the importance of the trophy as it serves not only as a preparation tool but also as motivation for the winners as they embark on the new campaign.
Here, we look at all Durand Cup champions since ISL clubs joined the tournament:
Gokulam Kerala (2019)
The first edition of the Durand Cup with ISL teams did not involve any team from the league in the final four of the competition, let alone in the final. Rather, the showpiece was contested between two I-League sides, Gokulam Kerala and Mohun Bagan, with this being the last tournament the latter played as a non-ISL entity. Both sides had a faultless group stage but had to work hard for their win in the semifinals, so the showpiece looked balanced. Eventually, the Malabarians won their first Durand Cup title, riding on an impressive brace from Marcus Joseph. The Trinidadian already scored a late penalty against the other Kolkata giants, East Bengal, to save his side from a semifinal elimination and took the lead here from the spot as well. Before the opposition could regather themselves in the second half, the tournament’s top scorer Joseph struck again, which could have completed his hat-trick had his other goal not been chalked off controversially as offside. Mohun Bagan poured men forward in hope of a comeback, with Salva Chamorro reducing the deficit five minutes after an hour of play and also seeing a late handball appeal waved off by the official. Gokulam held on, with their goalkeeper Ubaid CK unshakable in goal, to maintain the score at 2-1 and create history for the team.
FC Goa (2021)
FC Goa became the first ISL side to reach the Durand Cup final after the tournament returned from a year's pause due to the pandemic. The Gaurs added their second cup title at the moment in their history after dominating the tournament with a goal flurry, scoring 15, but had to win on penalties against Bengaluru FC after it ended in a four-goal thriller in the last four to reach the final. Their opposition in the showpiece, Mohammedan SC, making their first Durand Cup final appearance since 2013, also became a tough nut to crack because of their solidity, but the Gaurs were able to find the breakthrough in extra time. Goa’s sparkling captain, Edu Bedia, lifted them to the title with a solitary goal in the 105th minute. Managed by Juan Ferrando back then, FC Goa became only the fourth Goan club to win the Durand Cup and the first since Churchill Brothers’ success in 2011.
Bengaluru FC (2022)
After tasting their last cup success in the form of the Federation Cup in 2018, Bengaluru FC reclaimed supremacy in such competition after four years in the form of their first-ever Durand Cup success. The success was even sweeter because it came against a going-to-be ISL Shield winners, Mumbai City, after years of discontentment with the lack of silverware for the team that couldn’t stop winning things at one point in time. Guided by Simon Grayson, the Blues qualified for the quarterfinals after finishing second in their group, where they scraped out a 2-1 extra-time win against Odisha FC before picking up a solid 1-0 win against Hyderabad FC to reach the final. Bengaluru FC wasted little time getting going at Salt Lake, with Sivasakhti Narayanan scoring within 10 minutes of the game. The Islanders were not out of the game at all as they showed their strength with Apuia restoring parity on the half-hour mark. However, the evening belonged to the Blues as their resilience paid off, with their defender Alan Costa scoring the winner in the 61st minute to ensure Sunil Chhetri take home yet another glamorous trophy Indian football has to offer.
Mohun Bagan SG (2023)
The 2023 Durand Cup became one of the most dramatic campaigns in the competition’s history and certainly the most entertaining one in recent memory as it saw the two magnificent Kolkata giants return to the summit of the tournament. The final saw a first Kolkata derby at this stage since 2004. The excitement began in the group stage itself as the pair was already drawn against each other for the second edition running. East Bengal surprisingly came out top this time against a Mohun Bagan side that had established a monopoly in this clash for a decade or so. It resulted in the Mariners qualifying as the best second-placed team, also relying on results elsewhere, making their path to the final a lot trickier. Yet, the team stayed strong after a shock derby defeat and gave a perfect response by registering their first-ever win against Mumbai City FC in the quarterfinals and then coming back from behind to defeat an elegant FC Goa team in the semifinals. These results provided them with significant motivation, but the real challenge lay ahead in the form of their old rivals.
East Bengal also had to work hard to reach the final, narrowly defeating Gokulam Kerala in the quarterfinals and then making a dramatic comeback from 2-0 down at the hour mark to win on penalties against a spirited NorthEast United in the last four. So, the Kolkata derby was renewed in a hostile atmosphere at the Salt Lake Stadium as it always happens when these two clash, but there was more at stake this time, with both vying to be outright winners of the competition jointly shared so far. While Mohun Bagan was seeking revenge for their shock defeat last time, the Red and Gold found their lost impetus after a long time, having also won their previous Durand Cup final, which was also against the Green and Maroons. All of these factors made the final a lot more nervous, edgy, rough and littered with fouls and angry confrontations. East Bengal looks to be the one soaking the atmosphere well, as they already won the tie before and seemed to be heading to their destiny when a controversial decision was made in the game.
Midfielder Anirudh Thapa was shown a second yellow card for a high boot challenge at a crucial moment of the game, although his initial booking was debatable. Carles Cuadrat’s side licked their lips at having a man advantage over their fiercest rivals in a prestigious cup final and took the gamble of pushing themselves forward. However, Ferrando, who already won the Durand Cup with FC Goa, did not bring in defensive reinforcements to try to take it on penalties, but rather put more attackers in the mix to settle things inside 90 minutes, even with a player disadvantage. This created a positive mindset within the team, and they were rewarded for it when they won a ball and played it to Dimitri Petratos, who scored the dramatic winning goal on the counterattack, as the Red and Gold had pushed more players forward. The believing East Bengal fans were crushed to the floor as the sole noise came from the Mohun Bagan gallery, who earlier feared the worst as their team weathered the storm to win a record 16th Durand title.
NorthEast United (2024)
Mohun Bagan rode on their success to reach consecutive Durand Cup finals, hoping to add to their collection just as they had four times previously in competition history. However, the beauty of the Durand Cup has always been fairytale successes and new names getting their hands on the trophy. NorthEast United became the latest club to add themselves to that list, making a revolutionary change under boss Juan Pedro Benali. Having been a stop-start side since their inception with the ISL in 2014, the Highlanders became more consistent under the Spaniard after exceeding expectations last time by reaching the semifinals and just 20 minutes away from reaching the showpiece. In 2024, the team came out stronger and with a renewed mentality to achieve the target this time. They dominated the entire tournament, scored 16 goals and conceded just one en route to the final, but facing the holders was a tough task.
It was proven by the Mariners' dominating the first half and going 2-0 up, leaving a mountain to climb. However, NorthEast were determined to write the wrongs of the last edition and brought on their star forwards' signings at the start of the second half, spotting the inability of the opposition to hold on to a lead in previous games. It worked perfectly, as within 20 minutes after the restart, Alaeddin Alajarie and Guillermo’s stunning strike brought them level. Despite maintaining their attacking surge and preventing forays from Mohun Bagan, they could not find the winner in normal time, so penalties were inevitable. Benali’s men maintained their nerve in the competitive shootout, with Gurmeet Singh making the decisive save from opposition captain Subhasish Bose to help his team create history, becoming the first side from the northeast region of India to win the Durand Cup.
