Similarity - Both ISL and ESL were designed to skim off the top of the existing system

Similarity - Both ISL and ESL were designed to skim off the top of the existing system

The ISL, when it began, had more than 10 foreign players per squad. Less than half the players were Indian, compared to I-League 2013-14 which had 14 clubs with a maximum of just 4 foreign players per squad. So when ISL went out to recruit Indian players for its first few seasons, the pool of players to choose from was nearly 300 while they needed just about 100 for their 8 franchises.

This allowed them to pick and choose the very best Indian players I-League had to offer, at very reasonable prices thanks to their exclusive window. It was a scout's dream: they were the only ones hiring, there was no one else to raise prices, and since almost every Indian professional player was there for the taking they could easily skim off the top; the artificially low number of players picked serving as a marker for higher quality.

While this scenario has changed a lot today, but the foundation of ISL's status the ultimate platform for Indian players to showcase their talents was laid down through the recruitment in the very first season, even before a single game was played.

This policy also extended to clubs. The three most successful and popular clubs in I-League, namely Mohun Bagan, East Bengal and Bengaluru FC, were also recruited by various means to play in the ISL. While for those clubs this was a positive development, but for I-League as a whole this was a major setback in terms of popularity and commercial viability. 

The ESL is also going to do the same, although the methods will vary. Once established as a regular tournament, there's a good chance it will replace UCL as the platform of dreams for ambitious players. The financial gap between the ESL founders and others will be greater than it is now, so it'll be even easier for ESL to secure the top talent. And with the 5 slots they have kept open for 'merit based qualification', they will get to take the best of the rest on a temporary basis, giving off an air of meritocracy without having to engage in it themselves.