By Sachit Subba • Football • Jun 25, 2026 13:08 PM • 11 views
KATHMANDU — In a significant blow to the domestic game, the All Nepal Football Association (ANFA) has been hit with an immediate and indefinite suspension by FIFA. The world governing body issued its ruling today, invoking Articles 14, Paragraph 1(i), and 14, Paragraph 3, of the FIFA Statutes, following a prolonged standoff between Nepal's football executives and state sports authorities.
The suspension marks a low point in the five-decade history of Nepalese football's alignment with Zurich. By crossing FIFA’s line of "third-party interference"—its term for government involvement in football administration—Nepal has been removed from the global football community.
The crisis, which had been building for over a year, reached a turning point after the National Sports Council (NSC), a government entity, intervened in ANFA’s internal governance. The friction first flared up last year on March 26, when ANFA decided to hold only central committee elections rather than the mandated tiered regional elections. In response to repeated directives, the NSC imposed a three-month domestic suspension on March 24.
Though the NSC lifted that freeze on May 14, ANFA leadership claimed it was unconditional, but the damage had already been done, and the state's involvement continued.
The feud became visible at Tribhuvan International Airport. ANFA President Pankaj Bikram Nembang and General Secretary Kiran Rai, alongside a 24-member delegation of officials and staff, were barred from boarding a flight to Mexico to attend the FIFA World Cup opening ceremony. Acting on a directive from the NSC, the Department of Immigration turned the executives back at the gates, exposing the dispute affecting the sport.
In an effort to prevent an administrative vacuum after ANFA's official four-year tenure expired on June 19, FIFA had explicitly ordered the incumbent committee to remain in charge as an interim caretaker body until fresh elections could be organised. Instead, the government chose to remain further involved in the dispute, without offering a viable legal resolution, forcing FIFA's hand.
The consequences of this executive deadlock are immediate and significant for every stakeholder in the country. Under the terms of the suspension, Nepal's national teams across all age groups are barred from entering or competing in any international tournaments. Furthermore, FIFA-badged referees from Nepal are disqualified from officiating global fixtures, and all development funding from Zurich will be frozen.
Founded in 1951, ANFA earned its official FIFA affiliation in 1972. For 54 years, despite political upheaval and internal instability, the nation maintained its standing on the world stage. Today, that streak ended, leaving Nepalese football isolated, paralysed, and facing an uncertain future.
