ISL: 'Remove Super Giants' trends after Sanjeev Goenka rebrands ATK Mohun Bagan to Mohun Bagan Super Giants
ISL: ATK Mohun Bagan won its maiden championship in the tournament, eclipsing Bengaluru FC 4-3 on penalties. Post-win, Sanjeev Goenka announced that the club would be rebranded to Mohun Bagan Super Giants, which yet again drew the ire of fans.
Indian Super League's (ISL) just-crowned champion ATK Mohun Bagan (ATKMB) franchise will be rebranded as Mohun Bagan Super Giants (MBSG) from the subsequent ISL season, i.e. ISL 2023-24. On Sunday, the franchise's lessor Sanjeev Goenka made the call after the ISL Final victory at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Margao, Goa.
"It is a small announcement but a substantial one. Next month, ATK Mohun Bagan will be renamed Mohun Bagan Super Giants. We were waiting for the [ISL final] win to announce it. This win offers an opportunity to publicise the information," Goenka stated shortly after his side's maiden title success.
ATKMB conquered its first-ever ISL title after triumphing over former champion Bengaluru FC (BFC) in a penalty shootout after it all ended 2-2 at full-time and extra-time. Formerly known as Mohun Bagan (MB), the club entered the ISL as ATKMB after a merger with former two-time champion ATK during the 2020-21 season.
Nevertheless, although fans are excited about the club returning to its former glory, they were disappointed with the announcement. ATK's merger with MB never suited the fans, as they demanded that ATK be removed from the historic century-old club, India's most successful one.
The announcement of adding Super Giants again irked the supporters, as they felt it does no good removing ATK since the new name does not signify the club and its legacy. Quickly, the buffs began to trend #removesupergiants on social media, with some drawing parallels to Goenka's Indian Premier League (IPL) franchise, Lucknow Super Giants (LSG).