Shillong, Jul 23: The Shillong Premier League 2026 is all set to begin on Saturday with defending champions Langsning beginning the defence of their title in the opening match against Sawmer. Kick-off will be at 4:45PM.
The dates and times of the first seven fixtures of SPL 2026 have been released by the organisers, the Shillong Sports Association, with finalisation of the rest to follow after taking into consideration the matches of the upcoming Durand Cup 2026, etc.
Arguably, no other SPL in recent years has generated quite so much excitement and fans are eagerly expecting this to be the most competitive season.
All eyes are on Nongkseh, who have been promoted this year after being the champions of the 2025 First Division with a nine-game winning streak. They then made a splash in the SSA’s new Champions Cup, which they won against Shillong Lajong. Their success continued away from home in the Sikkim Gold Cup and they then returned home to romp to victory in the 5th Meghalaya State League.
Incredibly, they have achieved all this without losing a single match. It would therefore be difficult to consider them anything less than the favourites to lift the SPL.
But do not count out the others just yet. Langsning were outliers in SPL 2025 until they suddenly stepped on the accelerator and won the league in a dramatic change of fortunes; after Round 5 they were only in fourth place and trailing the leaders by 4 points. A few weeks and a few positive results later, they were celebrating with their third SPL trophy. Then, in the MSL, they were untested in terms of really strong opposition until the semifinals where they were up against Lajong. There they delivered in the penalty shootout to progress to the final where they held the lead before losing 2-1 to Nongkseh.
Five-time champions Lajong and twice winners Mawlai were both in the running for the SPL title but failed to win their respective last fixtures, which opened the way to Langsning lifting the trophy. SLFC continued to impress, in the Champions Cup and MSL but Mawlai was not seen again until the latter tournament. Though probably the weakest in terms of player strength of the four clubs mentioned, Mawlai still had their moments and will be dangerous in SPL 2025.
Also worthy of consideration are Rangdajied United. They have been SPL champions once, back in 2013, but runners-up a record seven times. They were only sixth in SPL 2025 but made it to the Super Cup (another new tournament introduced by the SSA) where they finished second to Lajong. Rangdajied’s performance in the MSL was a little underwhelming but teams would be foolish to underestimate them as they are a club brimming with talented youngsters.
Meanwhile, a major team will be making their return to the SPL this season – Meghalaya Police. They quietly worked their way up the SSA pyramid and finished second in the First Division last year. They were hoping to add new players to their squad but it is not clear whether they were able to do so and dreams of the SPL title might have to wait a little longer.
The four other clubs to round out the SPL this year are Nangkiew Irat, Sawmer, Laitkor and Mylliem.
Nangkiew Irat were challenging for the SPL title last year until their momentum faded towards the end and they could only finish fourth. They were very active in the local transfer periods and should be able to make a strong run again. Mylliem, meanwhile, are also quietly confident of putting in a good show this year after only managing eighth place in 2025. Sawmer and Laitkor are a little more uncertain but they have sprung upsets in the past and could do so again.
With the SPL once again following a single leg format, every match is a vital one and the players will have to put their best foot forward and hold it there right through to the end. With teams having strengthened their squads and with their eyes firmly on the prize waiting at the end, SPL 2026 is set to be one of the best ever.
(File photo of Nongkseh versus Langsning)
