Nepal are set to host the inaugural Saff U-19 Championship with the All Nepal Football Association (Anfa) all prepared for the event to be held at the astro-turf ground at the Anfa Complex in Satdobato.

The first astro-turf in the country, laid last year in May, will host an international tournament for the first time when Nepal begin their Group ‘A’ campaign against Bhutan on August 20. The football governing body is using the Anfa turf as an alternate venue as the Dashrath Stadium is undergoing renovation.

The Dashrath Stadium has not hosted any football match after the devastating 7.9M earthquake in April 25. The Great Quake has also damaged several parts of the stadium. “We were also planning to share the matches at the Army grounds in Lagankhel but since it has a very less seating capacity, we decided to host all the matches at Anfa Complex,” said Indra Man Tuladhar, Anfa Chief Executive Officer.

“We also want to appeal the football lovers to visit Anfa Complex in less numbers as it cannot accommodate more than 5,000 people. We decided to go on with the scheduled date to give the message that Nepal have moved on after the massive earthquake,” added Tuladhar.

Bangladesh are the other team in Group ‘A’, while Maldives, India and Afghanistan are in Group ‘B’. The top two teams from each group will make it to the semi-finals scheduled for August 27, while the final will be played on August 29. Sri Lanka and Pakistan are not participating in the tournament. 

Saff has provided Anfa with $ 50,000 to host the tournament that has an estimated budget of Rs 7.8 million. While the Bhutanese team has already arrived for the tournament, rest of the participating countries will land in Kathmandu by Wednesday morning, informed Anfa.