The AFC has refused to grant the mandatory certificate to eight I-League coaches, including Zoran Djordjevic, the coach of I-League champions Churchill Brothers, as they do not possess the AFC 'A' coaching certificate or its equivalent.

The AFC regulations stipulate that clubs must have a certified coach in order to be eligible to qualify for the AFC Champions League, Asia's top club championship.

However, it is not mandatory for clubs participating in the AFC Cup, the second tier competition, to have a certified coach.

The All India Football Federation general secretary, Alberto Colaco, said India's governing body would decide whether to allow these coaches to continue in the league or make it mandatory for clubs to employ only coaches who meet the AFC criteria.

"The AFC maintains that these coaches do not fit into their AFC Champions League criteria," Colaco told the Times of India.

"We have to take a decision whether we can allow these coaches to function in the league."

In a letter to the AIFF, AFC's acting general secretary Alex Soosay said apart from Djordjevic, Air India's Bimal Ghosh, JCT's Sukhwinder Singh, Mohun Bagan's Karim Bencherifa, Mahindra's David Booth, Vasco's Elvis Goes, Mohammedan Sporting's Shabbir Ali and Chirag United's Subrata Bhattacharya were all uncertified by the AFC.

The AIFF had requested the AFC to relax the rule as these coaches are stepped in experience.

Booth for instance was national coach of Vietnam and Brunei, but was also included in the list because his FA advanced license has lapsed.

Sukhwinder is a former India national coach and had led JCT to the inaugural National Football League title in 1996-97, while Bhattacharya and Ali have also led teams to NFL title triumphs.

East Bengal coach Subhas Bhowmick also does not possess an AFC 'A' certificate, but his name was not included in the list because he was not coaching an I-League club when the AIFF request was made.