Amid the loud and frequent shouts of men at the Satdobato-based ANFA Complex during the sixth game of the Martyr’s Memorial B Division League between Nayabasti Youth Club and Boys Union Club, a woman’s voice—soft but commanding—cut through.

The voice came in from the technical area in front of the dugout of Boys Union Club (BUC), one of Nepal’s oldest football clubs established in 1952. Wearing a white cap and spectacles, BUC’s head coach Chandra Bhandari was busy guiding her players in her professional debut as a coach, a landmark in Nepal’s sporting history; none of the top three tiers of Nepal’s leagues had ever seen a woman head coach before.

And Bhandari said she wanted to make her entry into the big league special, determined not to settle for anything less than a league title.

Chandra Bhandari is not a new name in Nepali football. She is not to be confused with the one who debuted for Nepal against Kyrgyzstan during last month’s International Women’s Championship at Dasharath Stadium. This Chandra Bhandari donned Nepal’s jersey in 2010 and even captained the side for a couple of years before retiring in 2014 due to an injury.

“I sustained an injury in my knee on this same ground, back in 2014,” Bhandari told the Post after her team played a goalless draw against Nayabasti Youth Club on Wednesday. “I then had to retire.”

Bhandari started playing football when she was still a child at her hometown Dhangadhi in Kailali. Having honed her skills at the makeshift grounds of Dhangadhi, she began a proper career in Nepali football through the U-14 squad.

Bhandari, who played as a striker, was a leading goal scorer for the Nepal Police Club (NPC) across several tournaments—including the National Women’s League, the highest division of women’s club football in Nepal. She went on to captain the national team in 2013 when Nepal were visiting Kuwait for a friendly.

Jamuna Gurung, the then skipper, had been ruled out for the friendly due to an injury; it created the opportunity for Bhandari to lead the national side. Bhandari’s career as a footballer, however, did not last long, ending the very next year.

“This ground brings back memories,” Bhandari said. “I have an opportunity to create history as a coach in the same ground where I ended my career as a player.”

Bhandari added, “I feel proud to be the first woman coach to lead a men’s club in such a big platform.”

Before joining BUC, Bhandari was busy as an assistant coach for the football team of DAV School, where she also worked as a sports teacher. “It is my first time coaching on such a big platform,” she said.

Bhandari stressed that she eyes nothing less than a title for a club with a rich history. BUC, the local club of Tripureshwar area, were a dominant team during their heyday, lifting the A Division League title in 1975. Yet, in the last two decades, they have been struggling.

A poor result during A Division in 2010 got BUC relegated. They returned to A Division as the B Division champions in 2013. But they got relegated again after a poor 2013-14 season and failed to climb up in 2016, 2019, 2020-21 and 2022.

“This club deserves to be one of the best in the country,” Bhandari said. “It is possible, but the dream needs an ignition. And the perfect way to provide that ignition is to lift the league title this season.”

BUC shared points with Nayabasti in their first game of the 2025 season on Wednesday. It was not exactly a dream debut for Bhandari but it has not diminished her confidence either. “It was the first game for the team, so there were some communication gaps,” Bhandari said. “We will bounce back. My team is balanced, from the goalie to the striker, and we can win this league.”

The first of the 13 rounds between the 14 participating teams concluded on Wednesday after the seventh game between Saraswoti Youth Club and Bansbari Club, which the former won 2-1. BUC will play their second game of the League against Tusal Youth Club on Tuesday.

Among 18 candidates who passed the ANFA/AFC B Diploma Course in January, Bhandari and Anu Lama were the only two women. Bhandari got the offer from the BUC after completing the course.

“When I was offered the job at BUC, I accepted it with full courage,” Bhandari told the Post. “My seniors also motivated me to do so. I am now determined to achieve my set goals.”

Yet, as more matches are played, the difficulties for Bhandari are likely to mount.

When asked about how challenging it was to face a team led by a woman, a member of Nayabasti’s coaching staff expressed surprise. “What, Boys Union had a woman coach?” he said.

His reaction highlights just how rare it is for a woman to coach a men’s team in Nepal.

Aruna Gurung, a former Nepali national player, coached a men’s team in Chitwan some years ago, said Sanjeev Mishra, tournament director at the All Nepal Football Association (ANFA). But there had been no woman coach in the big divisions—A, B and C—of men’s football, Mishra said. “Now, seeing Bhandari, another former national player, taking the helm at a top level is gratifying,” he said.

Recalling how the introduction of Nabina Shrestha as the physio of Friends’ Club Kopundole in 2018 paved the way for women physios in men’s club football, Mishra said, “I believe Bhandari has opened the doors for Nepali women coaches in men’s professional football.”

BUC players said they are happy to have a woman coach.

“We believed our management would get us the best coach,” said Man Kumar Tamang, skipper of BUC, who missed Wednesday’s match due to sickness but will be returning in the next game. “Our training under the new coach has been fantastic.”

Whether the new woman coach will succeed in leading the team to a league title will be clear by June 8, when BUC play their last game against Bansbari Club.

“The dressing room is happy and motivated,” Tamang told the Post over the phone. “We know we can win this league.”