The suspension over third party interference strips Nepal’s football association of its membership rights and bars its national and club teams from international competitions….reports Asian Lite News Desk
FIFA has suspended the All Nepal Football Association (ANFA) with immediate effect over violations of its statutes relating to third party interference, leaving Nepal’s national and club teams barred from international competitions until further notice.
The decision was announced by the Bureau of the FIFA Council following a prolonged governance dispute involving Nepal’s football governing body. Earlier this year, Nepal’s National Sports Council had suspended ANFA for three months, although that decision was later withdrawn.
In a statement, FIFA said the suspension was imposed because of “flagrant violations” of its statutes concerning interference by a third party.
“The Bureau of the Council also decided to suspend the All Nepal Football Association with immediate effect due to flagrant violations of the FIFA Statutes linked to interference by a third party in accordance with article 14 paragraphs 1(i) and 3 of the FIFA Statutes,” FIFA said.
The world governing body confirmed that, effective from June 24, 2026, ANFA has lost all membership rights under Article 13 of the FIFA Statutes.
“Consequently, with effect from 24 June 2026, ANFA has lost all of its membership rights, as defined in article 13 of 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,” FIFA said.
The suspension means Nepal’s men’s, women’s and youth national teams, along with clubs affiliated to ANFA, are ineligible to compete in FIFA and Asian Football Confederation (AFC) competitions until the ban is revoked.
In addition to being excluded from international tournaments, ANFA, its member associations and officials will also lose access to FIFA and AFC funding, development programmes, training courses and other forms of technical support.
FIFA also instructed its member associations and affiliated organisations not to engage in sporting activities with ANFA or its representative teams while the suspension remains in force.
“This also means that neither ANFA nor any of its members or officials may benefit from any development programmes, courses or training from FIFA and/or the AFC. Moreover, we would remind you and your affiliates not to enter into any sporting contact with ANFA and/or its teams while ANFA is suspended,” the governing body said.
FIFA added that the Bureau of the Council or the FIFA Council could lift the suspension before the next FIFA Congress if the conditions leading to the sanction are resolved.
Under Article 14 of the FIFA Statutes, member associations are required to manage their affairs independently and without undue influence from third parties. The regulations state that any breach of these obligations may result in sanctions, even if the external interference was not directly caused by the association itself.
The statutes also hold member associations responsible for the actions of officials and governing bodies where gross negligence or wilful misconduct has contributed to violations of FIFA’s rules.
