MUMBAI: The Mumbai Football Arena in Andheri has been given the go-ahead to host the final of the 5th Indian Super League (ISL) on March 17, according to sources connected to the venue.

The first leg of the semifinals will be held on March 8 & 9 while the return legs will be held on March 11 & 12. The first and the fourth placed team on the table will face off on March 8 and 11 respectively while the other two will play on March 9 and 12. That will give both teams a long enough break to recover and prepare for the final.

Mumbai had hosted the final of ISL's inaugural edition in which ATK beat Kerala Blasters by a solitary goal. That game however, was hosted at the 55,000 capacity DY Patil Stadium in Nerul, Mumbai City FC 's home venue at the time.

The Ranbir Kapoor co-owned side shifted to a much smaller 9000-capacity venue in Andheri back in 2016. While the capacity may not be as much as Bengaluru, Goa or Guwahati - the other three semifinalists, the turf and facilities at the Mumbai Football Arena are of high quality, and was therefore favoured by former India coach Stephen Constantine.

Though Mumbai failed to attract large numbers for their home games this season -despite some good performances - organisers aren't worried about the attendance.

"For the first final, 35,000 people showed up at the DY Patil Stadium, and Mumbai wasn't even playing. We saw how the stadium was full to capacity for the final of the Intercontinental Cup last year. The final of the ISL is bound to be the best domestic match-up, so people will come to watch," a source said.

This is the second time Mumbai have made it to the semifinal stage and are currently third on the table with one game left. As it stands, Mumbai will have to face FC Goa for a spot in the final, something they would be happy to avoid considering they've lost both their matches 5-0 and 2-0 this season.

Mumbai will be hosting the final for the second time in five years.

