FIFA has announced that the whole country is banned from playing football.
FIFA has decided to suspend Nepal from all football activities for an indefinite time and shared this news online.
Nepal, currently ranked 117th in the latest FIFA world rankings—above countries like Barbados, Pakistan, Gibraltar, and San Marino—is now not allowed to take part in any football events. This suspension comes because of interference by outside parties in the work of the All Nepal Football Association (ANFA).
Earlier, Nepal’s National Sports Council gave ANFA a three-month suspension but later took it back. However, after warnings from FIFA and the Asian Football Confederation (AFC), Nepal was suspended from all international competitions because of serious breaches of FIFA rules linked to this outside interference.
During this suspension, Nepal won’t receive any funding from FIFA or the AFC.
FIFA said, “The Bureau of the Council has suspended ANFA immediately due to clear violations related to third-party interference, following our rules. From 24 June 2026, ANFA loses all its membership rights until further notice. This means neither ANFA nor its teams can take part in international events during the suspension.”
They also added that ANFA and its officials cannot benefit from any FIFA or AFC training or development programs. FIFA reminded everyone not to have any sporting contact with ANFA or its teams while the suspension is in place.
The suspension can be lifted by FIFA before the next FIFA Congress if ANFA meets the conditions, and FIFA will let everyone know if this happens.
Nepal’s best FIFA ranking was 124th between 1993 and 1994, and their lowest was 196th in January 2016. They have never qualified for a major international tournament but did win the AFC Solidarity Cup in 2016. Their last game was a 1-0 loss to Laos in Asian Cup qualification in March, but now, because of the ban, they can’t play any further matches until FIFA allows them.
FIFA takes third-party interference very seriously and has banned other countries like Pakistan, Indonesia, the Republic of Congo, and Nigeria for similar reasons. The bans on Pakistan and the Republic of Congo were lifted after they fixed their issues, and Nepal will likely have the same chance in the near future.
Right now, Nepal is the second country suspended from all international football alongside Russia, who remain banned due to the invasion of Ukraine.