Inter Kashi

In May 2023, the All India Football Federation, the governing body of football in India, announced they would accept bids for new clubs to join 2023–24 I-League season onwards. On 29 June 2023, it was announced that agreement for the Varanasi franchise had been reached between Kolkata-based RDB Group of Companies and European clubs Atlético Madrid and Inter Escaldes. FC Andorra has an association with Inter Escaldes, but does not have any direct role with Inter Kashi. The moniker of "Inter" was added because of the tie up with Inter Escaldes.

The club also announced creation of the Atlético de Bharat Academy for the development of grassroots football in the state. Spaniard Carlos Santamarina was chosen as the first head coach of the club, while Javier Broch and Arata Izumi were roped in as assistant coach. English footballer Peter Hartley was the first player signed by the club.

On 28 October 2023, Inter Kashi played their first ever official match against Gokulam Kerala in the I-League. Edmund Lalrindika scored the club's first goal, and Mohammed Asif Khan scored the equalizer to earn the maiden point in a 2–2 draw. Their first win came against Namdhari on 6 November 2023. On 21 November, Inter Kashi played their first I-League home match against Mohammedan in the Ekana Football Stadium in Lucknow. In October 2024, Inter Kashi's two players Sachu Siby and Harmanpreet Singh joined Primera Divisió outfit Inter Club d'Escaldes but Sachu Siby was not able to pursue it because of visa restrictions.

The second season for them remains controversial and is also their first season playing out of Uttar Pradesh after their previous home venue Ekana Football Stadium was declared unfit to play and they had to shift to Kalyani Stadium in Nadia. On 22nd November 2024, they played their first match on their new home ground which also remained the league opener match against SC Bengaluru. Inter Kashi proposed to shift their home stadium from Kalyani Stadium, Nadia to Indira Gandhi Athletic Stadium, Guwahati till their new stadium in Varanasi gets built.

After getting promoted from the I-league, Inter Kashi played their first match of the 2025-26 Indian Super League season on 14 February 2026 against FC Goa, which they drew 1-1.

2024-25 season controversy

The second season of Inter Kashi remained controversial while having remarks from various members of Indian football, and allegations by Delhi FC's recent owner Ranjit Bajaj, who also owns Minerva Academy. Inter Kashi appealed against Namdhari FC playing an ineligible player, leading to the AIFF Disciplinary Committee voiding the match and awarded 3 points to Inter Kashi. However, this order was later stayed by the order of AIFF Appeal Committee.

Churchill Alemao, the owner of Churchill Brothers, accused Inter Kashi and the AIFF of pre-match disruptions among the controversial row. Inter Kashi on the other hand raised serious concerns regarding disparity and clarity from the AIFF.

The club also raised concerns regarding rules and mismanagement that happened towards them in the build-up to the match between the two teams, which was set to be a season-decider. The Varanasi-based club made allegations against Churchill Brothers for not letting them practice on the match venue ground the day before the match, which is mandated the in AIFF rule book. This match remained so controversial that the AIFF had to invite referees to officiate the match from Nepal.

The eventual match saw eight yellow cards, one red card and a controversial goal for Churchill, which Kashi claimed to be a handball but was given by the referees. Later, Namdhari FC also appealed against Inter Kashi for breaking foreigner registration rules in the I-League, relating to the re-registration of Spanish forward Mario Barco.

After the season ended, the AIFF eventually declared Churchill Brothers as winners, and Inter Kashi as runners-up. In response, on 27 April 2025, Inter Kashi went to CAS against the AIFF Appeals Committee's decision to award the I-League title to Churchill Brothers. This decision was made after the AIFF Appeals Committee reversed an earlier decision that awarded the title to Inter Kashi. CAS proceeded to issue an order staying the AIFF Appeals Committee's decision. The court also issued an order to prevent AIFF from declaring a winner, or holding a medal ceremony until the CAS arbitration is concluded.

However, the AIFF still conducted the ceremony disregarding CAS's decision, and awarded the trophy and medals to Churchill's players. The ceremony was also conducted without the presence of State Football Association in the ceremony. This action drew criticism from the Goa Football Association, and raised questions about the AIFF's credibility and its relationship with state associations.

The AIFF later acknowledged the CAS stay order and asked Churchill Brothers to return the trophy. The AIFF's decision was eventually overturned by a CAS ruling on 18 July 2025, which crowned Inter Kashi champions of the I-League 2024–25.