According to SPORTbible, FIFA has suspended Nepal from all football activities with immediate effect after determining that the country’s football association had committed “flagrant violations” of the governing body’s statutes.
The decision was announced by FIFA after concerns over third-party interference in the All Nepal Football Association (ANFA), resulting in an indefinite suspension from international football.
In an official statement, FIFA said: “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.”
The suspension has major consequences for Nepalese football. Effective from June 24, 2026, ANFA has lost all membership rights under FIFA’s statutes, meaning the country’s national teams and clubs are barred from participating in international competitions until the suspension is lifted.
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FIFA added: “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.”
In addition to being excluded from international tournaments, ANFA and its officials will no longer be eligible for FIFA or Asian Football Confederation (AFC) development programmes, coaching courses, training initiatives or financial support.
FIFA acted after governance concerns
As reported by SPORTbible, the suspension follows months of governance disputes surrounding Nepalese football. Nepal’s National Sports Council had previously imposed a three-month suspension on ANFA before later reversing the decision.
Both FIFA and the AFC had warned the Nepalese football federation about third-party interference before deciding to impose the suspension.
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Nepal currently sits 117th in the FIFA World Rankings and has never qualified for either the FIFA World Cup or the AFC Asian Cup. The country’s greatest international success came in 2016 when it won the AFC Solidarity Cup.
The national team’s most recent match ended in a 1-0 defeat to Laos during AFC Asian Cup qualifying in March.
Nepal joins Russia on FIFA’s suspension list
FIFA has previously suspended several national associations over governance issues, including Pakistan, Indonesia, Nigeria and the Republic of Congo. Pakistan and the Republic of Congo both had their suspensions lifted after complying with FIFA’s governance requirements.
According to SPORTbible, Nepal now joins Russia as the only national associations currently suspended from international football. Russia has remained banned from FIFA and UEFA competitions following the country’s invasion of Ukraine.
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While Nepal’s suspension is indefinite, FIFA has confirmed that it can be lifted before the next FIFA Congress if ANFA satisfies the conditions required to restore compliance with FIFA’s statutes.
