Churchill Brothers v Punjab FC: Head-to-head ahead of ISL 2026-27 matchweek three

Churchill Brothers will host Punjab FC at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Fatorda, Goa, in the third fixture of the third matchweek of the Indian Super League 2026-27 season. The meeting will be the first between the two clubs in the ISL top tier.

Churchill Brothers opened the season with a 2-1 win over Manolo Marquez’s Mumbai City FC, with goals from Gaurav Bora and Sebastian Gutierrez, and then lost 4-0 at home to East Bengal, the reigning champions of India. Punjab FC began with a brace from Raphael Messi Bouli in their opener against the Juggernauts to take three points, and followed that with a 1-1 draw against Mumbai City after Gurkirat scored a late equaliser.

The sides have met previously in the I-League, with their first encounter taking place behind closed doors at the Vivekananda Yuba Bharati Krirangan during the COVID-19 era; in that match Curtis Fleming’s side lost 1-0 to Churchill after Clayvin Zúñiga from Honduras scored a late winner in the 85th minute. In a later Championship-stage meeting, Luka Majcen opened the scoring and Clayvin Zúñiga added a brace as Churchill won 3-2 despite Joseba Beitia and Baba each scoring for Punjab.

Ahead of the 2022-23 season Punjab FC made significant signings and appointed Greek coach Staikos Vergetis; the first meeting between the clubs that season at Tilak Maidan ended 0-0. Following the sacking of Rueda, Mateus Costa was appointed interim gaffer for the Red Machines, who then lost 3-1 to the Shers at Tau Devi Lal Stadium; Luka Majcen, having switched sides, scored in that match and Chencho Gyeltshen scored once and provided two assists.

Punjab FC went on to win the I-League in the 2022-23 season and secured promotion to the Indian Super League. The two clubs’ recent encounters and the promotion of Punjab set the context for their first top-tier meeting in Goa this season.

In their overall head-to-head across six matches, Churchill Brothers have won three, Punjab FC have won one and two matches ended in draws. Englishman Kurtis Guthrie of Punjab FC and Clayvin Zúñiga are the joint top scorers in the fixture with three goals each, while Luka Majcen has two goals and has represented both clubs.

The fixture between Churchill Brothers and Punjab FC will take place at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Fatorda as the third match of matchweek three in the ISL 2026-27 season.