The seven teams in action include Kathmandu Rayzrs, Lalitpur City FC, Pokhara Thunders, Butwal Lumbini FC, Dhangadhi FC, FC Chitwan and Jhapa FC.

Two past champions–the inaugural edition (2021) champion Kathmandu and the second edition (2023) winner Lalitpur–are going to lock their horns in the first game of the tournament. The opening game is expected to be a sold-out crowd as the intense clash between the two Valley teams will also see a performance by singer Durgesh Thapa.

In their past four encounters in the NSL, Kathmandu have defeated Lalitpur thrice while losing once.

The seven teams will play in a single round-robin format. The top four teams will then play in the two qualifiers and an eliminator to decide on the two finalists. The final has been slated for April 26.

Compared to the second edition, where there were nine teams, the third edition did not see participation from Birgunj United FC and Sporting Ilam De Mechi FC.

Of the seven teams in 2025, six of them, except Jhapa, have been participating in all three seasons. Biratnagar City FC was the other team in the tournament in 2021; it was their first and last season.

Foreign faces

While the seven teams have a good set of national and domestic players, the third season also has good foreign players and coaches.

For instance, Lalitpur’s coach, Simon Nicholas Grayson, of England, is not only a professional coach but a former player as well. He played for teams like Leeds United (1988-92), Leicester City (1992-97) and Aston Villa (1997-99). He was also the one who led Leeds, as the manager, to the Championship in 2010.

Likewise, Kathmandu, Dhangadhi and Butwal also have foreign coaches, Patrick De Wilde of Belgium, Juan Manuel Martinez of Spain and Puspalal Sharma of Bhutan, respectively.

Chitwan, Pokhara and Jhapa have successful Nepali coaches, Nabin Neupane, Suman Shrestha and Prabesh Katuwal, respectively.

Meanwhile, the seven teams have procured foreign players from various countries in their squads, a maximum of six, to win the title.

For instance, Lalitpur, the defending champion, have retained two major foreign assets–goalie Jeffrey Baltus (French) and striker Imoh Ezekeil (Nigerian). Baltus and Ezekeil had the most number of cleansheets and goals last season; Baltus had five cleansheets, joint-highest alongside Jhapa’s Stefan Cupic, while Ezekeil scored six goals.

Except for Dhangadhi, Jhapa and Pokhara, the other four have fulfilled their quota of six foreign players. A team can field up to five overseas players during the game.