When Champions Change: Football’s Most Notable Title Reversals, Including Inter Kashi’s CAS Win

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In a rare but impactful moment for Indian football, Inter Kashi were recently reinstated as the 2024-25 I-League champions following a decisive ruling by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS).

The Varanasi-based club had originally lost the title to Churchill Brothers after the AIFF Appeals Committee ruled against them over the registration of player Mario Barco. But with CAS overturning that decision, Inter Kashi have now officially been awarded the championship, highlighting one of football's few but significant cases where titles have changed hands after the season ended.

Globally, football has witnessed a few such dramatic reversals, where league titles were either stripped or reassigned due to off-field controversies.

Perhaps the most famous example is the 2005-06 Serie A season in Italy, rocked by the Calciopoli scandal. Juventus were initially crowned champions, but the discovery of systematic influence over referees led to their relegation and loss of the title. Inter Milan, who finished third, were awarded the Scudetto after the second-placed team was also implicated. The 2004-05 title was left unassigned.

In France, Olympique Marseille faced a similar fate in 1992-93, when they were stripped of the Ligue 1 title for bribing opponents. Though Paris Saint-Germain were next in line, they declined the title due to political pressure, leaving that season without a champion.

Brazil's 1987 Campeonato Brasileiro Série A saw a different twist. Flamengo won a breakaway tournament, while Sport Recife topped the official league. After decades of dispute and court battles, Sport was recognized as the sole champion in a 2018 ruling.

Meanwhile, in South Sudan, Al Hilal Wau were briefly stripped of their 2018 league crown for fielding an ineligible player, only for the title to be reinstated after an appeal.

Inter Kashi's CAS triumph not only restores their title but also places them in a unique club of teams that had to fight for their championship status beyond the pitch. It serves as a reminder that sometimes, justice in football is delivered not on the field, but in courtrooms.