Nepal's National Sports Council has suspended the Nepal Football Association (NFA) for three months.
This step was taken after differences of opinion regarding how NFA's election should be held. The council said that NFA's replies to the sports council in relation to the election had fostered dissatisfaction.
An announcement has been made that due to this suspension, any of the tournaments held by NFA will not be acknowledged by the government.
This issue came to light in December 2025, over the decision to hold a hasty election due to the NFA's sitting Executive Committee's term coming to an end. The sports council and Nepal's Ministry of Youth and Sports are encouraging that the regional association election be held before the NFA election.
However, NFA continues to state that they are an independent institution, with the power to hold an election under their own guidelines. This case was brought to court as well. The court ruled that NFA holding a hasty election is not against the law.
With this suspension, the biggest danger to football in Nepal is the possibility of a suspension from FIFA. FIFA's guidelines state that third party or government influence in the operation of football associations that are a part of FIFA's member nations is prohibited. If suspended by FIFA, Nepal will not be able to participate in international tournaments. They would also not be able to play in friendly matches against other countries nor would they be able to participate in any football activity on an international scale.
The sports council did say that they were not told to exert their influence onto NFA. Nepal's Sports Council stated that it was a part of their work to respect their nation's laws.
Nevertheless, NFA's General Secretary Kiran Rai stated that if FIFA suspends Nepal, the responsibility should be shouldered by those who are obstructing NFA's efforts.
NFA is currently focusing their efforts on the association's election, which has been scheduled for tomorrow.
Nepal is competing in the ongoing 2026 SAFF U-20 Championship, which is being held in Maldives. Nepal has won the two games they have played as of yet and are the first team to have secured their spot in the semi-finals.
