Despite still being in the group stage, the 2026 FIFA World Cup has already delivered on the upsets and tight, seesaw games expected of the tournament. And fans are hopeful the blockbuster start means it's only going to get better from here.

As the World Cup continues to pick up pace in North America, here in the Nepali capital, fans have also been swept up in the festive mood. Roadside vendors are displaying team jerseys for sale on shopfronts, restaurants and bars are putting on nightly screenings, and fans are flocking to stores to make sure they don’t go another game without their team’s colours.

The Post spoke to a number of customers and vendors at New Road’s many stores about their favourite teams, World Cup memories, what it means to them, and why they were all lined up to buy team jerseys.

Ramesh Subedi, 54, from Bhaktapur, was picking up an Argentina kit. He has been supporting the team since 1986, when Diego Maradona led the team to its second title in Mexico. He fondly remembers growing up watching the World Cup. While at the store, he also picked up the German, English and Uruguayan kits. “These teams always perform on the big stage. I want an Argentina jersey because that's been my team for so long, but these other teams are impressive as well—they are all winners," he says. Subedi says he thinks of the World Cup as football’s Kumbh Mela and hopes to see Nepal at the games someday. “Even if Nepal makes it two decades later, I would like to sit back on my couch and watch them play.”

Another customer, a 20-year-old college student from Sarlahi, says she has never seen the World Cup before but is excited to watch it for the first time. She tagged along with her friends to the store. “I think I will get a Brazil kit, I like the country.”

Rohit Tamang is a 21-year-old college student in Kathmandu. He has been a Manchester City supporter for a few years now and is a big Erling Haaland fan. “I have been looking for the Norway away kit. I saw they have the home kit, but I am looking for the away one; it’s nicer. I hope I can find it,” he says, “having a jersey is a ‘chino’ of having watched the games.”

Musician Sunny Mahat was at a New Road store to get a Portugal jersey for his son. He remembers watching the 1994 World Cup in his Dhapasi neighbourhood. “Not everyone had a colour TV like today. So we would all gather at someone's place and watch the games. It was an opportunity to socialise and talk to people,” he says. Mahat does not want to get a jersey for himself. He says he is not a big football guy, but totally gets why people do it.

New Road’s jersey sellers are cashing in on these loyalties, superstitions and passions that make football’s biggest event special.

Jersey Pasal Nepal has been run by a husband-and-wife team since 2015. “The World Cup definitely brings in more customers. We have a daily footfall of around 500 people nowadays. There are many worse copies on the market. We sell stuff that’s very close to the real deal. When people buy a kit, they want it to look like what the players wear and to last. We provide those things,” she says.

At another store in the area, 72-year-old Nanda Lal Dhakal was buying a full Argentina kit for his 5-year-old grandson. Dhakal, a resident of Bharatpur, had been in Kathmandu for work for a few days and wanted to get the kit before he left. “I haven't really seen much football. But I would like my grandson to take an interest in these things. He likes to play a lot,” Dhakal said smilingly.

Another couple, who own a clothing store close to New Road gate, told us they were surprised by the demand this time around. “We have been selling jerseys for the last three World Cups. We have never had so many customers coming to buy,” the husband said. “People want to support the big guys, the players who score and the teams who do well,” the wife added.

“We had been selling a lot of Spain jerseys in the last few weeks. But since their draw [against Cabo Verde], we have noticed that the jersey does not sell as much anymore.”

Prior to speaking to the Post, she shut down someone haggling with her over a Messi kit, saying, “He just scored a hat trick the other day. These big names don’t come cheap, sir.” The couple shared that they were worried about whether the games would happen at all, given the US’s rhetoric leading up to the tournament. “No one stocked up. Importers were worried about the games not happening, and we did not order as much as we should have.”

From uncles buying kits for their SEE-passed nephews to veteran watchers collecting some good-looking pieces, people from all walks of life are celebrating the festival of football in Kathmandu.