Football

Nepal’s messed up domestic football

Irregular leagues and poor management of mofussil games have undermined the spirit of the sport.

Players of Ranipokhari Corner Team (blue) and Tushal Youth Club (red) in action during their B Division fixture at ANFA Complex, Lalitpur, on Friday. B Division has returned after three years. Photo: Courtesy of ANFA

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Nayak Paudel

Published at : April 5, 2025

Updated at : April 5, 2025 08:51

Kathmandu

The love for football in Nepal has been diminishing or this is what the people in the field perceive to be the case. Nepal’s international matches, be it men’s or women’s, are still a serious concern for Nepalis, but domestic football, which keeps the passion alive and kicking round the year, has failed to interest them.

There was a time when Nepalis cheered for local clubs, wore their jerseys, and indulged in debate over the performance of players and transfers. That scenario is long gone.

The All Nepal Football Association (ANFA), Nepal’s football governing body, has been unable to organise the league tiers—A, B, and C Divisions—in a timely manner, and mofussil tournaments have struggled both to stick to the laws of the game and display a healthy level of professionalism.

A-Division clubs have lived off other domestic tournaments for the past two years, since June 2023 when Church Boys United (CBU) lifted the title in their maiden entry to the highest tier. Further, they became only the second team, after Manang Marsyangdi Club, to win C, B and A Divisions in consecutive seasons (2021, 2022 and 2023).

“With an inconsistent league system, which is a club’s major backbone, we have no other choice,” Reuben Rai, president of CBU, told the Post. “As a club, more so as the defending champion of A Division, we need to survive. Therefore, we are engaged in mofussil tournaments.”

In the past month alone, CBU won two local tournaments–the 5th Mechinagar Gold Cup and the 23rd Tilottama Gold Cup. “The local tournaments have allowed us to keep our fanbase busy with activity,” Rai added.

To complete a league cycle, which does not go beyond a year, ANFA needs to organise the C, B and A Divisions simultaneously. However, ANFA is taking a year for each division.

Moreover, the B Division league in 2022, which saw CBU as winners and promoted to A Division in 2023, has returned after three years. Its fourth round concluded on Friday with Tushal Youth Club and Ranipokhari Corner Team playing a 1-1 draw. The latest season of C Division was in 2024, which took place after a gap of two years.

According to ANFA, there are several reasons why the leagues have not been regular. “The association has never taken the leagues lightly. Domestic leagues are the foundation for the national team,” said Suresh Shah, the ANFA spokesperson. “C Division concluded last year, while B Division is underway. ANFA is preparing for the A Division now.”

Yet, for the country’s domestic football scene to return to its glorious days, regular organisation of the league structure won’t suffice; it needs professionalism.

Many laws neglected

Seeing a mofussil tournament in Nepal conclude without a dispute is rare. The reasons are often dissatisfaction with the decisions of match officials.

“A tournament’s image deteriorates when players and staff engage in abusive behaviour against match officials,” Buddhi Bahadur Gurung, president of the ANFA Referee Association, told the Post. “Despite having advanced technology, such as VAR, international-level games are also error-prone. In Nepal, we have none of the high technology.”

“Referees are humans, and humans sometimes make mistakes,” Gurung added.

However, he assured that the referee association always monitors if a referee intentionally or innocently made the wrong decision. “We review match videos and even monitor the games live to keep track of how referees perform. In cases of mistakes, referees are made aware. In cases of wrongdoings, they are punished.”

According to Gurung, players, clubs and organisers should never forget that a referee’s decision is the last.

Of the 17 Laws of the Game by the International Football Association Board (IFAB), Law 5, the Referee, states, “The decisions of the referee regarding facts connected with play, including whether or not a goal is scored and the result of the match, are final. The decisions of the referee, and all other match officials, must always be respected.”

Similarly, the referees’ association does not send officials to tournaments not permitted or authorised by ANFA. “ANFA’s permission ensures that the governing body will take serious action against wrongdoers. It also guarantees the legitimacy of the tournament.”

Incidents like the one in the match between Pokhara Thunders and Lalitpur City in the 3rd Nepal Super League should not have happened, Gurung said. “It is wrong.”

On Wednesday, Pokhara’s officials, Sundar Thapa and Dipak Shrestha, had reached the touchline and engaged in abusive behaviour with the match officials. They were dissatisfied with the referees over a no-goal decision when Lalitpur’s keeper made a goal-line save in the 80th minute; Pokhara argued that the ball had crossed the line.

The Nepal Super League (NSL) has banned the duo from entering the stadium throughout the season. But it was not the only dispute seen in the NSL this season.

The NSL boasts itself as the biggest franchise football league in Nepal with millions of investment from organisers and participating clubs. But the league saw discontent from A-Division clubs before the NSL auction in the first edition.

A-Division clubs had then argued that a player already associated with one club could not play for another club while the contract was still active. The concern was neglected, and the auction was organised. Even now, players associated with one club play in the less-than-a-month tournament for other clubs.

“It is a joke. But what can we do when we have no standards and rules?” CBU President Rai said. “Even when the league is irregular, we need to retain players. But without the league, we cannot afford their regular salary. We are thus forced to allow them to play for a different club in the NSL.”

CBU’s skipper Ananta Tamang, who also plays for Nepal’s national team, is captaining Lalitpur in the NSL. He also helped Lalitpur win the second season in 2023. Likewise, New Road Team is allowing their best player, Anjan Bista, to captain Chitwan in the NSL.

Similarly, in the March 31 game between Chitwan and Pokhara in NSL Season 3, the organisers lifted the rule of foreign players requiring a labour permit to play

The problems of domestic football do not end here. Domestic tournament organisers also misuse their authority to issue accreditations to kin and friends unrelated to the event, sell tickets in excess of the venue’s capacity, and misbehave with fans. These problems happen in women’s domestic tournaments as well.

But ANFA asserts that action is taken against misdeeds in football.

“The NSL took action against the two officials of Pokhara. We have asked for further details from the organisers,” Shah said. “We will add punishment if it is deemed essential.”

Pokhara Thunders’ Sundar Thapa abuses match officials in the NSL game against Lalitpur City on Wednesday. Photo: Screenshot

ANFA has also taken serious steps for wrongdoings in the past. For instance, the ANFA Disciplinary Committee banned RC32’s player Prince Shrestha for two years and players Bidur Rijal and Prabin Rai for one year in 2022 for failure to comply with basic rules. The committee also banned Shree Bhagawati Club officials Rajaram Shrestha and Bikram Dangol for a year after they manhandled officials in a B Division League game against Bansbari Club on March 23, 2022.

Still, the football governing body does not take action in all cases of misconduct.

For instance, neither ANFA nor law enforcement took any action against the abusers who beat fans at Dasharath Stadium during the final of the 3rd KP Oli Cup last month. Representatives and volunteers of Youth Association Nepal, organisers of the KP Oli Cup and a sister organisation of CPN-UML, abused fans for chanting against UML chair and prime minister, KP Sharma Oli.

ANFA has also yet to decide on many complaints registered with them. The Armed Police Force (APF) Club had filed a complaint at ANFA’s Appeal Committee last year demanding the points of Three Star Club be deducted as they fielded two ineligible players in the A Division encounter in 2023. APF appealed after ANFA’s disciplinary committee decided to impose only a cash fine.

Way forward

“To establish a proper football culture, we need proper rules. The rules should also be imposed without any discrimination. Football has the power to bring about a positive change, and no one should be allowed to impinge on its professionalism,” said Rai.

Similarly, the referee association’s Gurung stressed that the club and players should be briefed properly before a tournament so that they are well aware of the dos and don'ts.

“It is not right to praise yourself if you win and blame the match officials and organisers if you lose,” Gurung told the Post.

In order to spread the game’s appeal, the clubs have long been demanding a home-away format.

“If our games were in Jhapa, we would have thousands of fans for each game. The clubs don’t benefit if big tournaments take place only in Kathmandu valley,” Jhapa FC coach Prabesh Katuwal said at the post-match conference of NSL Season 3 on Thursday.

When ANFA representatives were asked about plans to expand the horizon of domestic football, they replied that they are doing their best with available resources and investment.

Nayak Paudel
Nayak Paudel covers sports for The Kathmandu Post. He previously worked at the Post (2018–19) and spent over five years at The Rising Nepal. His reporting spans crime, health, education, and social issues.