Super League Kerala 2026 Schedule: Full SLK Season 3 Fixtures List till Gameweek 6, Dates, Venues

The Super League Kerala (SLK) Season 3 is set to kick off on September 25, with six teams once again battling for supremacy in Kerala's franchise-based football competition.

The opening game will see defending champions Kannur Warriors FC take on 2025 runners-up Thrissur Magic FC at the Jawahar Municipal Stadium in Kannur.

The third edition also brings a significant change to the competition format. Draws will no longer be recorded in league matches. If a game is level after 90 minutes, the winner will be decided by a penalty shootout. A regulation-time victory earns three points, while a shootout victory earns two points and the losing team receives one.

With Kannur entering the campaign as defending champions, Thrissur looking to go one step further and former champions Calicut FC aiming to regain the title, the six-team league promises another competitive season.

Super League Kerala 2026: The Six Teams

Kannur Warriors FC

The defending champions head into Season 3 with the pressure of defending their crown. Kannur beat Thrissur Magic FC 1-0 in the 2025 final to claim the title.

The Warriors have retained several important members of their previous squad, including Muhammed Sinan, Asier Gomes and Ernestine Lavsamba. Andriy Chernyshov are set to coach them as the likes of Gerard Artigas, Sairuat Kima have been added to the ranks.

Thrissur Magic FC

Thrissur enter the new campaign as the reigning runners-up after reaching the 2025 final. They lost 1-0 to Kannur in the title decider but had already established themselves as one of the strongest sides in the competition.

Marcus Joseph was one of their major attacking threats in 2025, while Ivan Markovic contributed both goals and assists. The club has also appointed David Caneda as its new head coach for the 2026 campaign.

Calicut FC

The inaugural champions remain one of the established forces in the competition. Calicut finished the 2025 league stage strongly and reached the semi-finals, where they lost 1-0 to eventual champions Kannur Warriors.

They have bolstered their squad with the arrivals of experienced Indian goalkeeper Mirshad Michu, while Argentinian duo Federico Boasso and Maximiliano Urruti will play key parts as well.

Malappuram FC

Malappuram were among the four teams to reach the 2025 knockout stage and will be looking to turn their competitive league campaign into a deeper run this time.

John Kennedy Xavier Da Costa was the leading scorer in the previous SLK season, finishing with eight goals, while Aitor Aldalir Aguirrezabala also made an attacking contribution.

Thiruvananthapuram Kombans FC

The Kombans will be looking to improve on their previous campaign and push into the playoff positions. Their squad has featured attacking players such as Autemar Bispo and Paulo Victor.

Forca Kochi FC

Forca Kochi will begin the new season at home against Malappuram before travelling to face Thrissur in Week 2. The Kochi franchise has undergone squad changes ahead of Season 3, with Jishnu P among the players whose continuation has been reported.

Forca Kochi have roped in Argentinian Nahuel Pereyra, while experienced goalkeeper Debjit Majumder has joined them. They will be coached by former Belgium assistant coach Vital Borkelmans.

Super League Kerala 2026 Format

Six teams will compete in the league phase. The teams play each other in a double round-robin format, meaning every club faces each of the other five teams twice.

The top four teams in the final league table qualify for the semi-finals. The semi-final match-ups are:

• 1st vs 4th
• 2nd vs 3rd

The semi-final winners advance to the final.

The major change for Season 3 is the elimination of draws from league matches. A match level after 90 minutes goes directly to a penalty shootout:

• Regular-time win: 3 points
• Penalty-shootout win: 2 points
• Penalty-shootout defeat: 1 point

Super League Kerala 2026 Schedule: Week 1 to Week 6