The IndianOil Acers Sports Scholarship Scheme 2026 is Indian Oil Corporation’s new sports scholarship: 300 athletes across 25 sports disciplines, paid a monthly scholarship of Rs 30,000 to Rs 60,000 for three years, plus up to Rs 80,000 a year for tournament travel and equipment. Applications close on 25 November 2026 at 11:59 PM.
It is open to any Indian sportsperson aged 25 years or below who has represented the Indian team, attended a national camp or core group, or played for a state team in the latest recognised national tournament. There is no income limit and no academic marks requirement – selection is on performance alone. Only sports and events that are part of the Los Angeles 2028 Olympics or the 2026 Asian Games are considered.
IndianOil Acers Sports Scholarship 2026 at a glance
Quick facts2026-27
| Scholarship from | Indian Oil Corporation Ltd. (IndianOil) – Sports Cell, Mumbai |
| Last date to apply | 25 November 2026, 11:59 PM – the application website closes at that time and no application is accepted after it |
| Official website | IndianOil Acers Sports Scholarship Scheme 2026 – official guidelines PDF |
The scheme is new for this season and it is a scholarship for athletes, not for students of a particular course. Every selected sportsperson is placed in one of three categories – Sub-Junior, Junior or Senior – and inside that category either as a Scholar or an Elite Scholar. The category and sub-category decide the monthly amount.
What the IndianOil Acers scholarship pays
- Sub-Junior: Rs 30,000 a month as a Scholar, Rs 40,000 a month as an Elite Scholar.
- Junior: Rs 40,000 a month as a Scholar, Rs 50,000 a month as an Elite Scholar.
- Senior: Rs 50,000 a month as a Scholar, Rs 60,000 a month as an Elite Scholar.
- Upgradation: a Scholar or Elite Scholar can move up to Super Acer on hitting the performance benchmarks during the tenure – Rs 50,000 a month in Sub-Junior, Rs 60,000 in Junior and Rs 70,000 in Senior.
- Olympian Acer: Rs 1,00,000 a month, the top level of the scheme.
- Annual lump sum: up to Rs 80,000 a year for tournament participation and sports equipment, Rs 3,000 for the medical insurance premium and Rs 5,000 for attire carrying the IOCL logo, paid against documentary proof of the expense.
The scholarship runs for three years. Performance is reviewed at the end of every year and renewal depends on the previous year’s performance; a scholar who does not meet the qualifying criteria at the end of a year is discontinued. A sportsperson who gets employment, or a similar scholarship from another corporate or institution during the tenure, loses this scholarship.
How the 300 scholarships are divided
| Sub-Junior (40 male + 40 female) | 80 scholarships |
| Junior (75 male + 75 female) | 150 scholarships |
| Senior (35 male + 35 female) | 70 scholarships |
The 25 disciplines in the scheme are archery, athletics, badminton, basketball, billiards and snooker, boxing, carrom, chess, cricket, football, golf, gymnastics, hockey, judo, kabaddi, kho-kho, rowing, shooting, squash, swimming, table tennis, tennis, volleyball, weightlifting and wrestling. Athletics, boxing and shooting carry the largest share with 20 scholarships each, followed by archery, cricket, hockey and wrestling with 18 each.
If a category has vacancies because enough eligible candidates are not available, the vacancies are filled from the other categories in the same game. Vacancies left in one sport may also be filled by eligible sportspersons from another sport, on merit.
Who can apply – age and performance criteria
- You must be an Indian sportsperson aged 25 years or below as on 25 November 2026 – the age is calculated on the last date of application.
- Elite – team games: you represented the Indian national team in an international tournament, or you were selected in the latest Indian team camp or core group, in the Sub-Junior, Junior, Youth or Senior category.
- Scholar – team games: you represented your state team in the latest recognised national tournament in the Sub-Junior, Junior, Youth or Senior category.
- Elite – individual games: a national ranking of 1 to 5, or a finalist or semi-finalist at the Nationals, or a member of the Indian team in official international events.
- Scholar – individual games: a national ranking of 6 to 10, or a quarter-finalist in a recognised national tournament.
- You can apply in one category only – Sub-Junior or Junior or Senior.
- The ranking or position considered is the one achieved in the latest National Championship or National Selection Tournament held before this scheme was advertised in 2026, and results published on the official websites of government-recognised sports bodies are the ones that count.
Certificates or rankings issued by a National Sports Federation that has been de-recognised by the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports are not accepted for evaluation, so check your federation’s status before you build your file around a certificate.
Sport-specific conditions you must check before applying
- Only events that are part of the Los Angeles 2028 Olympics and the Asian Games 2026 are considered.
- Athletics: individual events only. Swimming: individual events in freestyle, backstroke, breaststroke and butterfly only.
- Archery: Recurve, Compound and Indian round only.
- Hockey and football: 11-a-side only. Kabaddi: standard style only.
- Chess: events under classical time control only.
- Cricket: Sub-Junior and Junior applicants are ranked on batting and bowling performance in the Elite Group of U-16 and U-19 events; Senior applicants on the Elite Group of U-23 and Senior events.
- Where a category covers several age groups (say U-14, U-15, U-16 under Sub-Junior) and two applicants have a similar ranking, the one who competed in the higher age group gets preference; within the same age group, the younger applicant gets preference.
How to apply for the IndianOil Acers Sports Scholarship
- Open the official IndianOil Acers application form linked from the guidelines on iocl.com and register with your mobile number and e-mail address.
- Fill every column of the online form – the scheme says incomplete applications are liable to rejection.
- Upload a passport-size photograph, a certificate of age proof and at least one, and at most three, performance certificates.
- Submit before 25 November 2026, 11:59 PM. Once submitted, the application cannot be edited, so check the details before you press submit.
- Keep the acknowledgement: the acknowledgement of submission and the final list of selected candidates are sent by e-mail and SMS to the registered mobile number and e-mail address.
Applications are accepted online only. IndianOil states that no application will be entertained by post, e-mail or any other mode, and that originals of the age proof and performance certificates of shortlisted sportspersons are verified at its designated offices – the sportsperson has to travel for that verification at their own expense.
Important dates
- 25 November 2026, 11:59 PM – last date and time to submit the online application.
- After the closing date – shortlisting, with e-mail and SMS intimation to shortlisted sportspersons.
- Dates informed later – verification of original age proof and performance certificates at IndianOil’s designated offices.
- Three years – the scholarship tenure, with a performance review at the end of every year.
Frequently asked questions
The application website closes on 25 November 2026 at 11:59 PM. IndianOil says no application is accepted after that time and none is entertained by post or e-mail.
A monthly scholarship of Rs 30,000 or Rs 40,000 in Sub-Junior, Rs 40,000 or Rs 50,000 in Junior and Rs 50,000 or Rs 60,000 in Senior, depending on whether you are a Scholar or an Elite Scholar, plus up to Rs 80,000 a year for tournaments and equipment, Rs 3,000 for medical insurance and Rs 5,000 for IOCL-logo attire.
Any Indian sportsperson aged 25 or below on 25 November 2026 who has represented the Indian team or attended a national camp or core group, or played for a state team in the latest recognised national tournament, in one of the 25 sports covered by the scheme. There is no income or marks condition.
Twenty-five disciplines, including archery, athletics, badminton, basketball, boxing, chess, cricket, football, golf, gymnastics, hockey, judo, kabaddi, kho-kho, rowing, shooting, squash, swimming, table tennis, tennis, volleyball, weightlifting and wrestling – but only events that are part of the Los Angeles 2028 Olympics or the Asian Games 2026.
No. A sportsperson can apply in one category only – Sub-Junior, Junior or Senior.
Yes, but you have to give an undertaking that you will discontinue the other scholarship if you are selected. The scholarship is discontinued for any athlete who takes up employment or another corporate or institutional scholarship during the three-year tenure.
Three years, with a performance review at the end of every year. Renewal depends on the previous year’s performance and the scholarship is discontinued if the qualifying criteria are not met.
Official links
- IndianOil Acers Sports Scholarship Scheme 2026 – guidelines (PDF)
- Indian Oil Corporation Ltd. – official website
- National Scholarship Portal
Related reading: national scholarships, class 12 scholarships and graduation scholarships.
Related scholarship posts: