Kathmandu: A rare scene unfolded at the All Nepal Football Association (ANFA) headquarters on Thursday as current and former national footballers, age-group players and fans thronged the premises demanding that the football governing body immediately resume the top-tier domestic competition — the Martyrs Memorial ‘A’ Division League.

For almost three years, Nepali footballers have been forced to hang up their boots, left with little to do but wait. The country’s premier league has remained suspended for 879 days, a vacuum widely blamed on ANFA’s reluctance to organise the tournament.

Led by Bikram Lama, former national captain and president of the Nepal Football Players Association (NFPA), the players gathered at ANFA’s main gate. Joining him were Rohit Chand — one of the few Nepali players to earn 100 international caps — and Anjan Bista, Nepal’s joint all-time highest scorer with 13 international goals, among others.

However, the players were barred from entering the premises. A heavy security presence including Nepal Police, Armed Police Force, and private guards gave the impression of a tense standoff.

In a symbolic act of protest, the footballers hung their medals on the ANFA gate — a powerful expression of frustration over what they see as the administration’s apathy toward Nepali football.

Why the Players Took to the Streets

Had the domestic football calendar been followed annually as intended, players would now be competing in or preparing for the third season since the last league concluded on June 10, 2023.

Instead, it has taken nearly three years to complete a single season. The ANFA leadership under president Pankaj Nembang, elected in June 2022, has been criticised for its failure to uphold the national football calendar.

On October 14, ANFA announced the cancellation of the 14-team ‘A’ Division League — already approved by its annual general assembly — and instead proposed a National League featuring the top six clubs from the 2023 ‘A’ Division League along with four teams from the ongoing ANFA President’s League in Hetauda.

Adding to the players’ anger, ANFA declared that the next ‘A’ Division League would not be held until December 18, 2026 — months after the current leadership’s term expires in June 2026.

“League football is the backbone of any footballing nation,” said NFPA president Bikram Lama. “We’ve been deprived of our right to play for 889 days. Players have remained unemployed for years because of ANFA’s pathetic administration. We demand that the league be organised immediately, or that capable leadership take over.”

Players and fans also carried placards reading:

Enough of the Lies, Let Football Rise

On the Streets for the Sake of the Game

Conduct Football on the Ground, Not in the Calendar

We Play to Live, Not to Protest

Save Football, Start the Domestic League

Our Boots Are Idle, Our Hearts Are Not

Fair Play On and Off the Field

Players Hang Medals at ANFA Gate

Denied entry, the players tied their hard-earned medals to the main gate and left them there. “Those inside ANFA don’t understand the blood and sweat we shed for these medals,” Lama said. “They come at the cost of years of struggle and countless injuries.”