Nepal football faces an uncertain future as FIFA bans ANFA
A major setback for the Nepal football
The world football governing body, FIFA, has officially suspended the All Nepal Football Association (ANFA) with immediate effect after they found a third-party interference in Nepal’s football administration. A major setback for the Nepal football team, as their future is now uncertain on the international stage.
As we talk about Nepal football and the All Nepal Football Association (ANFA) facing a FIFA ban, the players and the football domestic clubs also have to wait until the ban is lifted and all the dispute to be settled.
The ANFA and the football officials of Nepal football will need to work with the officials and also with other authorities to lift the suspension as soon as they can.
Nepal football suffers after FIFA suspension
The decision was taken by the FIFA Council Bureau on 24th June 2026 and was officially announced the day after. Under Article 16 of FIFA Statutes, the ANFA has been suspended for violating rules.
After the dispute between ANFA and Nepal’s National Sports Council emerged as the main reason behind the scenes. The Sports Council had suspended the ANFA for a three-month period, but later, they lifted the ban. Mainly, the conflict between these two bodies has increased during the proposed election process.
The election got postponed. As a result, the term of the running committee has also ended, which created more uncertainty.
This suspension will cost Nepal football heavily as they will not take any part in any international competitions or any friendlies organised by FIFA. And not only that, all the domestic clubs from Nepal football who are with ANFA cannot play in any AFC-licensed tournaments. As it stands, international and domestic ways have all been blocked for Nepalese football.
In a financial position, the ANFA will face another setback as FIFA might stop all funding and support for development or else for any footballing programs.
“We hereby inform you that, as a result of the decision taken by the Bureau of the Council on 24 June 2026, ANFA has been suspended until further notice in accordance with article 16 of the FIFA Statutes,” FIFA mentioned.
“ANFA has lost all of its membership rights, as defined in the FIFA Statutes, until further notice. ANFA representative and club teams are therefore no longer entitled to take part in international competitions until the suspension is lifted.”
Next step for ANFA
The Nepal Football Team is currently ranked 177th in the FIFA ranking, but as we mentioned, they have faced a suspension from them. But what’s next for ANFA to lift the ban?
The suspension will remain stand still many days until FIFA approves all the things right and gets the satisfaction that all the problems have been solved. They didn’t mention any single timeline to lift the ban, as the suspension has created a major concern among all players, football clubs and football officials.
Why did FIFA suspend the All Nepal Football Association (ANFA)?
FIFA suspended ANFA due to third-party interference in the administration of Nepalese football, which violates Article 16 of the Statutes.
What led to the conflict between ANFA and the National Sports Council?
The dispute emerged after Nepal’s National Sports Council suspended ANFA for three months. Although the suspension was later lifted, disagreements over the election process and administration created tensions.
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Rohit Mistri is a sports journalist from Kolkata with over two years of experience in the field. He has extensively covered Indian football, including major tournaments such as the Calcutta Football League and the Indian Super League. His work spans on-ground reporting, match coverage, and in-depth storytelling, along with interviews of prominent sporting personalities. Rohit brings strong communication skills and a deep passion for sports narratives to everything he writes.