| Competition: | I-League 2nd Division |
| Dates: | Qualifying: 12 – 16 February Competition proper: 13 March – 26 May[1] |
| Winners: | Delhi |
| Promoted: | Delhi Shillong Lajong |
| Matches: | 88 |
| Total Goals: | 243 |
| League Topscorer: |  Irfan Yadwad(13 goals) |
| Biggest Home Win: | Bengaluru United 5–0 Chennaiyin (R) (14 April) East Bengal (R) 5–0 The Diamond Rock (23 April) Shillong Lajong 5–0 East Bengal (R) (29 April) |
| Biggest Away Win: | Chennaiyin (R) 0–5 Bengaluru United (31 March) Mumbai City (R) 0–5 Delhi (9 April) |
| Highest Scoring: | United 4–3 Ambernath United Atlanta (21 May) |
| Longest Winless: | 8 matches Mumbai City (R) |
| Longest Losses: | 6 matches The Diamond Rock |
| Highest Attendance: | 5,275 Shillong Lajong 2–1 Bengaluru United (21 May) |
| Lowest Attendance: | 25 Chennaiyin (R) 2–1 RKM FA (10 April) |
| Attendance: | 39,800 |
| Average Attendance: | 452 |
| Prevseason: | 2021 |
| Nextseason: | 2023–24 |
| Season: | 2022–23 |
2022–23 Hero I-League 2nd Division (known as Hero 2022–23 2nd Division League) was the 15th season of the I-League 2nd Division since its establishment in 2008. This was the first season of I-League 2nd Division since rebranding as the third tier of Indian football league system.[2] [3] [4] The league's group stage has been played from March to May 2023, parallel to the remaining part of both I-League and Indian Super League seasons. The top two teams on the league table, Delhi and Shillong Lajong, secured a place in the 2023–24 I-League season.[5] [6] [7]
On 27 September 2022, the league committee meeting presided by Lalnghinglova Hmar was held. It was initially decided that 15 teams would participate in the upcoming season, including the reserve sides of ISL teams. The final phase of the league will be played on a home-and-away basis.[8]
However, on 16 December, the league committee decided that 20 teams would play in I-League 2, consisting of 12 state league champions along with 6 ISL reserve sides and two qualification tournament winners.[9]
On 13 January, the League committee decided that two clubs would be promoted to I-League, and two relegated clubs, along with the remaining three final-round clubs, would directly qualify for the final round of next season.[10]
See main article: 2021–22 Indian State Leagues. As per AIFF, teams will be selected to participate in I-League 2 through state leagues nominations. Only the top-qualified team can be nominated from the state league. KLASA FC was the champions of the Manipur state league, but the All Manipur Football Association didn't nominate it but instead nominated the 5th position KIYC. AIFF decided not to allow any club from Manipur in the competition.
The reserve teams of the 6 Indian Super League clubs will participate. However, they would not be eligible for promotion.[1]
| No. | Club | City | State | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bengaluru FC Reserves | Bengaluru | ||
| 2 | Chennaiyin FC Reserves | Tamil Nadu | ||
| 3 | East Bengal Club Reserves | |||
| 4 | FC Goa Reserves | Margao | Goa | |
| 5 | Hyderabad FC Reserves | |||
| 6 | Mumbai City FC Reserves |
The states that did not conduct their leagues in the previous season nominated respective clubs to participate in the qualification tournament. The top 2 teams qualified for I-league 2.[12] [13]
| No | Teams Selected | City | State | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Corbett | Rudrapur | Uttarakhand | |
| 2 | Downtown Heroes | Srinagar | Jammu and Kashmir | |
| 3 | Shillong Lajong | Shillong | Meghalaya | |
| 4 | United Chirang Duar | Kokrajhar | Assam |
| Club | State/UT | City | Stadium | Capacity | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ARA | Gujarat | Ahmedabad | Shahibaug Police Stadium | 20,000 | |
| Ambernath United Atlanta | Maharashtra | Cooperage Ground | 5,000 | ||
| Delhi | Delhi | Delhi | Minerva Academy Ground | ||
| Dempo | Goa | Panjim | Dempo Academy Ground | 3,000 | |
| Downtown Heroes | Jammu & Kashmir | Srinagar | TRC Turf Ground | 11,000 | |
| Bengaluru United | Bangalore Football Stadium | 8,400 | |||
| Golden Threads | Panampally Ground | 2,500 | |||
| Jagat Singh Palahi | Phagwara | Hargobind Stadium | |||
| RKM FA | Ramakrishna Mission Sports Complex | ||||
| Shillong Lajong | Meghalaya | Shillong | SSA Stadium | 5,000 | |
| Techtro Swades United | Una | Minerva Academy Ground | |||
| The Diamond Rock | Madhya Pradesh | Balaghat | Mulna Stadium | 15,000 | |
| United | Kalyani Stadium | 20,000 | |||
| Bengaluru (R) | Bangalore Football Stadium | 8,400 | |||
| Chennaiyin (R) | Tamil Nadu | Chennai | SSN College Ground | ||
| East Bengal (R) | Naihati Stadium | 25,000 | |||
| Goa (R) | Goa | Margao | Nagoa Football Ground | ||
| Hyderabad (R) | Telangana | Bangalore Football Stadium | 8,400 | ||
| Mumbai City (R) | Cooperage Ground | 5,000 |
| Team | Manager | Captain | Kit manufacturer | Shirt sponsor | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ARA | Vivek Nagul | Naro Hari Shrestha | SEVEN | Amul | |
| Ambernath United Atlanta | Steven Dias | Himanshu Patil | Ambernath United Atlanta | ||
| Delhi | Surinder Singh | Gurtej Singh | Astro | Colordesign India | |
| Dempo | Samir Naik | Shallum Pires | Shiv Naresh | Dempo | |
| Downtown Heroes | Hilal Rasool Parray | Zubair Ahad Akhoon | Chinar | J&K Bank | |
| Bengaluru United |  Fernando Varela | Sushil Meitei | Hummel | NIMIDA | |
| Golden Threads | Samuel Geevarghese | Bibake Thapa | Nivia | Wayna | |
| Jagat Singh Palahi | Sukhwinder Kumar | Shamsher Singh Mahala | JB Sports | JSP Football Academy | |
| RKM FA | Jahar Das | Suresh Kumar Dhruv | Nivia | ||
| Shillong Lajong | Bobby Nongbet | Atlanson Kharmaw | Nivia | ||
| Techtro Swades United | Vipin Thapa | Janio Fernandas | King | ||
| The Diamond Rock | Chandan Rathod | Sujit Hansda | Nivia | Apollo Tyres | |
| United |  Steve Herbots | Sanjib Mondal | Trak Only | ||
| Bengaluru (R) | Kaizad Ambapardiwala | Harmanpreet Singh Lara Sharma | Puma | JSW | |
| Chennaiyin (R) | Cleofas Alex | Aqib Nawab | Nivia | ||
| East Bengal (R) | Bino George | Sanjib Ghosh | Trak Only | Emami | |
| Goa (R) | Sugitesh Mandrekar | Mevan Dias | T10 Sports | Parimatch News | |
| Hyderabad (R) | Renjith Ajithkumar | Mark Zothanpuia | Hummel | Stake News | |
| Mumbai City (R) | Anthony Fernandes | Ahan Prakash | Puma |
6 Indian Super League reserve sides play in this round, along with 12 state champions and two state qualification tournament winners.
Twenty teams are divided into four groups of 5, where each team plays each other twice in a home and away format. Each group winner along with the best second placed team qualify for the final round.
Since Group B has fewer teams, the result against fifth-placed teams in other groups will not be counted for the table ranking below.
The top 5 teams from the group stage will play each other in the final round in a single-leg format. The top 2 teams will qualify for the I-League.
As of 26 May 2023[14]
| Rank | Player | Club | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Irfan Yadwad | Bengaluru United | 13 |
| 2 | Hardy Nongbri | Shillong Lajong | 8 |
| 3 | Balwant Singh | Delhi | 7 |
| Ateeb Ahmed Dar | Downtown Heroes | ||
| Himanshu Patil | Ambernath United Atlanta |
As of 26 May 2023
| Rank | Player | Club | Clean sheets |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bishal Lama | Shillong Lajong | 6 |
| 2 | Furqan Ahmad Dar | Downtown Heroes | 5 |
| Antonio Da Silva | Dempo | ||
| Srijith R | Bengaluru United | ||
| 5 | Sangramjit Roy Chowdhury | ARA | 4 |
| Nitish Mehra | Delhi |
Gaurav Rawat Himanshu Patil Shahmeer Tariq Aron Vanlalrinchhana