Nepal Excluded from SAFF Championship 2026 Due to FIFA Ban

Kathmandu. Nepal will not participate in the SAFF Championship 2026 starting Thursday in Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh. The Nepali national football team has missed the competition because the ban imposed by the International Football Federation (FIFA) on the All Nepal Football Association (ANFA) has not been lifted.

On June 24, FIFA suspended ANFA citing government and third-party interference. FIFA considered the investigation by government bodies into ANFA's financial transactions and administrative activities as a violation of its rules regarding the independence of member associations.