His stoppage-time equaliser cancels out Joseph’s opener to seal the promotion
Fatorda: Hugo Díaz scored in stoppage time as Diamond Harbour FC rescued a 1-1 draw against Dempo SC at the PJN Stadium on Sunday to clinch the Indian Football League 2025-26 title and secure promotion to the Indian Super League with a match remaining.
Marcus Joseph’s second-half strike had placed Dempo on course for victory, but Díaz’s late header earned Diamond Harbour the crucial point that took them to 29 points and confirmed their maiden IFL crown.
The West Bengal side also completed a third successive promotion after lifting the I-League 3 and I-League 2 titles in the previous seasons.
Diamond Harbour looked tense in the opening exchanges, struggling to retain possession and lacking rhythm in attack. Dempo nearly capitalised when Sebastián Gutiérrez pounced on a defensive error but sent his effort narrowly wide.
The hosts continued to dominate proceedings with Gutiérrez at the centre of most attacks.
The Colombian forward dragged another attempt wide from distance before José Luis Moreno’s near-post flick from a corner was cleared off the line by Melroy Assisi.
At the other end, Mikel Kortazar failed to keep his effort down from a set-piece opportunity, while Ashish Sibi reacted sharply to deny Díaz after the Spaniard found space inside the area from a long throw.
Dempo finally broke the deadlock five minutes after the restart. Seigoumang Doungel won a free-kick on the edge of the area after being fouled by K Ajith Kumar. Joseph’s initial strike was blocked by the wall, but the striker reacted quickest to the rebound and blasted the ball into the top corner for his eighth goal of the campaign.
