New Delhi: Defending champions Dempo Sports Club and newly-promoted side Salgaocar will kick-off the Professional League on November 24, at Nehru Stadium in Goa.

Both Mohun Bagan and East Bengal will start their campaign at home. While Mohun Bagan will take on JCT on November 25, East Bengal will play Viva Kerala the next day.

AIFF sources said the inaugural matches of the erstwhile National Football League (NFL) had always been played in either Calcutta or Delhi; this time, for a change, it was decided to kick off the tournament in Goa.

“Moreover, the AIFF president, Priya Ranjan Das Munshi, will be in Goa during that period because of film festival,” sources said. “It would be easier for him to attend the inaugural match in Goa.”

The Pro League, the launch of which has already been delayed because of change of dates in the World Cup qualifiers, is likely to run uninterrupted till February 2008 before a break. With the AFC Challenge Cup scheduled in Chinese Taipei from March 1-16, the Pro League will be halted temporarily to accommodate the national camp.

National coach Bob Houghton has attached huge importance to the AFC Challenge Cup, specially meant for the middle and lower ranked Asian teams. The champions will automatically make the final round of the 2011 Asian championships.

Houghton is believed to have asked the federation to hold the national camp for AFC Challenge Cup for at least a fortnight. It means the Pro League will effectively remain close for nearly a month.

There could be further interruptions for the AFC Club championships as East Bengal and Dempo SC have qualified for the meet. The AIFF will make a formal announcement about the Pro League only after the India-Lebanon World Cup qualifier in Chennai on October 28.