Football

By a Staff Reporter Kathmandu (HamroKhelkud) - The Nepal National Football Team squad has been announced ahead of the trip to Malaysia for a friendly in preparation for the FIFA World Cup and AFC Asian Cup Qualifiers that follow. The team is set to depart for Malaysia on Wednesday. In light of goalkeeper Deep Karki and several other players missing closed camp, the squad was finalized on Tuesday, featuring six new faces. Ajay Chaudhary, Abhishek Limbu, Saubhagya Rai (Sanjeet), Bishal Basnet, Rohan Karki, and Samir Tamang have been called up for the first time. Additionally, veteran Bharat Khawas makes a return to the team. Bharat, Saubhagya, and Abhishek, initially not part of the preliminary squad, have been included in the final 23-member squad. The upcoming FIFA World ...

By a Staff Reporter Kathmandu (Hamro Khelkud) - All Nepal Football Association (ANFA) have announced the 33-man preliminary squad for the upcoming FIFA World Cup Qualifiers against Bahrain in March. Head coach Vincenzo Alberto Annese has finalized his preliminary squad along with four new faces called up for the closed camp. Defenders Ajay Chaudhary and Dipendra BK, midfielder Rohan Karki and forward Samir Tamang will be involved in the national team training for the first time. Similarly, Santosh Khatri, Anzal Maharjan and Bishal Tamang will make their returns to the closed camp. Kritish Ratna Chhunju and Abhisekh Baral, who have made the final cut previously, but yet to make their debut will join the team as well. Nepal will take the field against Bahrain on March 21 and 2...

By a Staff Reporter Kathmandu (HamroKhelkud) - Record champions Jordan have edged Nepal on penalties to win the WAFF Women’s Championship 2024. Nepal, one of the two invited teams in the tournament, succumbed 5-3 against Jordan who have now won the tournament in six occasions out of eight. Gita Rana’s stoppage-time penalty leveled the match at 2-2 and sent the match to penalties. Nepal’s Amrita Jaishi’s stop-kick was saved by the Jordanian number one Sherin Al Shalabe down to his right. The rest of the penalties, nine of them, found their way into the back of the net. Earlier in the regulation time, Sabita Rana Magar, starting her first match of the tournament, gave Nepal the lead in the 29th minute with a strike from the edge of the box that looped over Al Shalabe.  ...

By a Staff Reporter Kathmandu (Hamro Khelkud) - Preeti Rai's stoppage time screamer has guided Nepal to the final of the ongoing WAFF Women's Championship in Saudi Arabia. Nepal, thanks to Preeti's goal, completed a comeback from a one-goal deficit, to defeat Lebanon 2-1 in the second semifinal to book their place in the final. In the fifth minute of injury time, Nepal got a corner which was played by Bimala Chaudhary. Her corner, played towards the edge of the box, was cleared and fell for Preeti outside the box. Her first-time strike found the corner of the post and sent Nepal to the final. Earlier, Lebanon took the lead in the match with a gift given by Nepal in the form of an own goal. Right-back Puja Rana's pass to goalkeeper Anjila Subba was heavy and played away from h...

By a Staff Reporter Kathmandu (Hamro Khelkud) - Sabitra 'Samba' Bhandari has reached 50 international goals in Nepali colours in Nepal's 5-0 thrashing of Iraq in the WAFF Women's Championship 2024. Samba scored all five goals in the outing in Riyadh to take her international goal tally to 50 goals. Nepal took time to assert their dominance in the match but didn't stop after finding their foot in the game. Samba found the back of the net in the 14th minute to hand Nepal the lead in the match. She met a Rekha Poudel through ball played from her own half with blistering pace to put the ball past the Iraqi goalkeeper for the first goal of the match. Samba scored her second just two minutes later. She stole the ball from Direen Mullabakar's feet inside the box and easily beat the ...

By a Staff Reporter Kathmandu (Hamro Khelkud) - Nepal have commenced their invitation to the WAFF Women’s Championship 2024 with a convincing win over Syria. Nepal toppled the Syrian side ranked 160th in the world 4-1 to get their campaign off and running with a win. Nepal’s goals came from Amisha Karki, Anita Basnet, Sabitra ‘Samba’ Bhandari and Rekha Poudel.  Nepal asserted their dominance from the get-go keeping possession and running rounds around the Syrian defence, forcing mistakes out of the Syrian side time and again. The first goal came from a high press from the Nepali side.  In the 10th minute, Mayar Alloush's forward pass, amidst a cluster of Nepali forwards, landed at the feet of Preeti Rai. However, Preeti's heavy touch and an attempt of a shot was block...

Kathmandu (HamroKhelkud) - Hosts Nepal succumbed to Yemen in the second fixture of the FIFA World Cup Qualifiers Second Round. Nepal, playing their first home fixture of the round at the Dasharath Stadium in Kathmandu, lost 2-0 against Yemen. Substitutes Omar Al-Dahi and Mohammed Abdullah Al-Dahi scored a goal each for the visitors.  Nepal were equipped with the services of Ananta Tamang and Dinesh Henjan from the start, the two absentees in the 4-0 loss against UAE due to injury. It was Nepal who created the first clear chance of the match.  Forward Gillespye Jung Karki fouled the Yemen goalkeeper in his attempt to score in the third minute and squandered the opportunity. Gillespye was again at the center of attention when he failed to meet a Dinesh Henjan cross from the l...

Kathmandu (HamroKhelkud) - Nepal suffered a convincing loss against UAE in the first match of the FIFA World Cup Qualifiers Second Round. Nepal lost 4-0 against a fairly superior UAE side at the Al-Maktoum Stadium in Dubai. UAE’s record goalscorer and skipper Ali Mabkhout netted twice for the hosts while Khalifa Al-Hammadi and Fabio Lima also put their names on the scoresheet with a goal each. As expected, UAE were the dominant side from the very start of the match. Nepal had to su-off Laken Limbu due to an apparent ankle injury early in the match and he was replaced by Amrit Shrestha who was the culprit in the two goals Nepal conceded in the match. He was then subbed off on a yellow and was replaced by debutant Yogesh Gurung at the start of the second half. UAE went ahead in...

Subas Humagain, Kathmandu The Nepali men's national football team is facing the United Arab Emirates (UAE) on Thursday in the second round of FIFA World Cup 2026 AFC qualifiers. Only 3 players from the team that started the second round of the World Cup qualifiers 4 years ago are currently in the Nepali team. Captain Kiran Chemjong, who has played the most games for Nepal, defender Rohit Chand, who is playing football at the highest level, and Anjan Bista, the current top scorer are the only members who have repeated the journey. Nepal's most reliable defender Ananta Tamang was supposed to be in the team, but was rested after picking up an injury just 2 days before leaving for UAE. The current team of Nepal is probably the least experienced team competing at this level. Only ...