Nepal women's national football team
The Nepal women's national football team is controlled by the All Nepal Football Association and represents Nepal in international women's football competitions. The Women's Football Department is developed to control and manage the women's football activities. The official motto of women's football in Nepal is "Football for Change". It is a member of the Asian Football Confederation and the South Asian Football Federation and has yet to qualify for the World Cup.
| Nickname(s) | Nepali Chelis |
|---|---|
| Association | All Nepal Football Association |
| Confederation | AFC (Asia) |
| Sub-confederation | SAFF (South Asia) |
| Head coach | Ananta Thapa |
| Captain | Renuka Nagarkoti[1] |
| Most caps | Niru Thapa (41) |
| Top scorer | Sabitra Bhandari (42) |
| Home stadium | Various |
| FIFA code | NEP |
| FIFA ranking | |
| Current | 101 (25 August 2023)[2] |
| Highest | 91 (December 2017) |
| Lowest | 119 (September 2015) |
| First international | |
| Nepal 0–1 Hong Kong (Hong Kong; 14 December 1986) | |
| Biggest win | |
| Nepal 13–0 Afghanistan (Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh; 14 December 2010) | |
| Biggest defeat | |
| Japan 14–0 Nepal (Hong Kong; 24 December 1989) Japan 14–0 Nepal (Barotac Nuevo, Philippines; 12 November 1999) | |
| Asian Cup | |
| Appearances | 3 (first in 1986) |
| Best result | Group stage (1986, 1989, 1999) |
| SAFF Championship | |
| Appearances | 6 (first in 2010) |
| Best result | Runners-up (2010, 2012, 2014, 2019,2022) |
History Edit
Formation Edit
Nepal formed a women's national team in the mid-1980s and debuted in the 1986 AFC Women's Championship. During the start of the tournament, Nepal played their first official match against Hong Kong (14 December 1986), which they lost with a score of 1–0. Nepal women's side also participated in the final three phases of the Asian Cup in 1986, 1989 and 1999, never going beyond the group stages. Nepal proved to be in a difficult group with former champions Thailand, alongside Indonesia and Hong Kong, two relatively strong teams. As a result, Nepal had lost all three matches, two of them jarringly, while the match against Hong Kong proved to be a steady profit. In 1989 Nepal played again in the championship, against the same opponents, except that Thailand was substituted against Japan. This resulted in meagre points for Nepal, who lost every game by a wide margin, the smallest 0–3 against Hong Kong.
Nepal's FIFA First Vice President was Kamal Thapa. Nepal's first woman captain was Rama Singh when the Nepali women's football team was created, Kamal Thapa was the president of the All Nepal Football Association. Singh, who represented the Bagmati team, started playing in 1985. The second national team's captain was Kamala Hirachan who also represented the Gandaki team and the third women captain was Meera Chaudhary who represented Naryani team. Singh later became the first newsreader in Nepali television history, and Chaudhary has held a rank of DSP in Nepal police. The first female international goal scorer of Nepal is Pema Dolma Lama, who scored a goal against Uzbekistan at the 1999 AFC Women's Championship held in Philippines.
Crisis years Edit
As a result of the democracy uprising in 1990, there was an eight-year period without a women's national team. This negatively affected player recruitment, but nevertheless Nepal soon returned to international football during the Women's Asian Cup in 1999. Despite their triumphant return, the results were about the same as before the eight-year hiatus. The championship ended in the group-stage with Japan, Thailand, Uzbekistan and the Philippines, where Nepal lost all four games. Since then, Nepal has not appeared in the Women's Asian cup. Former men's national team technical director, Holger Obermann served as the technical advisor for the Chelis during their 1999 campaign.[3]
However, this did not mean that Nepal had not played football since 1999. The Mangladevi League, roughly a month-long women's football tourney, was set up trying to bring in women football players across the country. It was played in early 2000, in a league-cum-knockout basis. It was an initiative taken by a single person, but sadly discontinued after a year.[4]
Nepal had a long period without matches, but they impressed many in the South Asian Games in 2010, where they reached the final after beating several opponents by a wide margin. In the finals they lost narrowly 1–3 against the big favorite India. This gave the national team a much needed recognition. The 11th South Asian Games also were the first to host a women's football event as well.[5] In the opening match of the 2010 South Asian Games, Nepal women's U23 faced hosts Bangladesh, where they won with a single goal. The second match against Sri Lanka proved to be more illustrious as victory came in the form of 8 goals while holding a clean sheet. However, the scoring spree was short lived as the third group-stage match against India saw a heavy 0–5 loss. Nevertheless, Nepal had done enough to qualify for the second round (semi finals) against Pakistan which they won with a resounding 7–0 scoreline. This meant that Nepal would face a difficult rematch against India in the finals, although any result would ensure a medal at the very least for the Chelis. Despite finally ending the scoring drought against India, the game was lost 1–3. Despite putting on a valiant performance, the Chelis returned home with a silver medal which came to the delight of many supporters of Nepali football due to the rarity of the occasion.
Regeneration Edit
The regeneration of Women's football in Nepal was first realised when after the national leagues were reinstated in 2009. The women's national team prior to this, hadn't played an international game for 5 years. Nevertheless, the Chelis began training for two upcoming major international tournaments in the following year. In 2010, Nepali women footballers returned with two runner-up trophies, one from the 11th South Asian Games, and the other from the SAFF Women's Football Championship. Despite limited training, resources and less attention compared to the men's team, the women's team had performed exceedingly well internationally. In the South Asian Games, they defeated Sri Lanka 8–0, and in SAFF they thrashed Afghanistan 13–0 and Pakistan 11–0. Striker Anu Lama was the star of SAFF, scoring three hat-tricks to be declared the best player of the tournament. However, the team was defeated 0–5 by India in the SAG final, but it was a much more closely fought match when they lost 0–1 to the same team in the SAFF final recently.
Following the team's regeneration since 2010, the women's side rose 22 places in the FIFA ranking.[6]
Team image Edit
Nicknames Edit
The Nepal women's national football team has been known or nicknamed as the "Nepali Chelis".
Home stadium Edit
The team's home ground are various around the nation also shared with the Nepal national football team at the Dasarath Rangasala Stadium, a multi-purpose stadium in central Kathmandu, Nepal. Holding 25,000 spectators, of which 5,000 seated, it is the biggest stadium in Nepal. It is named after Dashrath Chand, one of the martyrs of Nepal. Prior to the 2013 SAFF Championship in Nepal, the Dasarath Rangasala underwent heavy renovation that saw several improvements such as the expansion of seats from 20,000 to 25,000.
Results and fixtures Edit
The following is a list of match results in the last 12 months, as well as any future matches that have been scheduled.
- Legend
Win Draw Lose Fixture
2023 Edit
| 15 February Friendly | India | 2–2 | Nepal | Chennai, India |
| 19:30 UTC+5:30 |
| Report | Bhandari 90' (pen.), 90+2' | Stadium: Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium |
| 5 April 2023 2024 AFC Olympic Qualifiers–Round 1 | Nepal | 1–5 | Vietnam | Kathmandu, Nepal |
| 18:00 UTC+5:45 |
| Report |
| Stadium: Dasarath Stadium Attendance: 2,715 Referee: Sunita Thongthawin (Thailand) |
| 8 April 2023 2024 AFC Olympic Qualifiers Round 1 | Vietnam | 2–0 | Nepal | Kathmandu, Nepal |
| 18:00 UTC+5:45 | Phạm Hải Yến 4', 7' | Report | Stadium: Dasarath Stadium Referee: Oh Hyeon Jeong (South Korea) |
| 13 July 2023 Friendly | Bangladesh | 1–1 | Nepal | Dhaka, Bangladesh |
| 00:00 BST (UTC+6) | Stadium: Bir Sherestha Shaheed Shipahi Mostafa Kamal Stadium |
| 16 July 2023 Friendly | Bangladesh | 0–0 (2–4 p) | Nepal | Dhaka, Bangladesh |
| 00:00 BST (UTC+6) | Stadium: Bir Sherestha Shaheed Shipahi Mostafa Kamal Stadium |
| 22 September 2022 Asian Games GS | Nepal | 0–2 | Vietnam | Wenzhou, China |
| --:-- UTC+8 |
| Stadium: Wenzhou Olympic Stadium |
| 25 September 2022 Asian Games GS | Japan | 8–0 | Nepal | Wenzhou, China |
| --:-- UTC+8 | Stadium: Wenzhou Olympic Stadium |
| 28 September 2022 Asian Games GS | Bangladesh | 1–1 | Nepal | Wenzhou, China |
| --:-- UTC+8 | Stadium: Wenzhou Olympic Stadium |
All-time results Edit
- As of 19 September 2022
- counted for the FIFA A-level matches only.
Positive Record Neutral Record Negative Record
| Nations | First played | P | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Afghanistan | 2010 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 20 | 1 | +19 |
| Bangladesh | 2010 | 9 | 6 | 2 | 1 | 15 | 5 | +10 |
| Bhutan | 2014 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 23 | 0 | +23 |
| Hong Kong | 1986 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 4 | −4 |
| India | 2010 | 17 | 2 | 4 | 11 | 11 | 38 | −27 |
| Indonesia | 1986 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 15 | −13 |
| Iran | 2019 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | +3 |
| Japan | 1989 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 28 | −28 |
| Kuwait | 2013 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 0 | +8 |
| Kyrgyzstan | 2019 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 2 | +6 |
| Malaysia | 2016 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 5 | −2 |
| Maldives | 2010 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 25 | 0 | +25 |
| Myanmar | 2018 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 10 | −7 |
| Pakistan | 2010 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 29 | 0 | +29 |
| Philippines | 1999 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 7 | −6 |
| Qatar | 2013 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 0 | +9 |
| Sri Lanka | 2010 | 8 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 30 | 0 | +30 |
| Tajikistan | 2019 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | +1 |
| Thailand | 1986 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 10 | −10 |
| Uzbekistan | 1999 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 11 | −8 |
| Vietnam | 2023 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 9 | −8 |
| Total | 1986 | 78 | 39 | 9 | 30 | 195 | 145 | +50 |
Coaching staff and team officials Edit
As of February 2021
| Head coach | Ananta Thapa[7] |
| Manager | Pema Dolma Lama |
| Assistant coach | Aruna Gurung |
| Goalkeeping coach | Ashmita Khawas |
| Team physio | Navina Shrestha |
| Technical official | Subash Neupane |
Players Edit
Current squad Edit
- The following players were named on for the Bangladesh friendly on 7 July 2023.[8]
| No. | Pos. | Player | Date of birth (age) | Caps | Goals | Club |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 16 | GK | Anjila Tumbapo Subba | 28 May 1996 | 20 | 0 | Sethu |
| 20 | GK | Anjana Rana Magar | 17 January 2002 | 4 | 0 | Nepal Army Club |
| 22 | GK | Usha Nath | 2 February 2001 | 0 | 0 | Nepal Police Club |
| 5 | DF | Amrita Jaishi | age=15 October 1994 | 19 | 0 | Nepal Police Club |
| 12 | DF | Gita Rana | 21 September 1996 | 21 | 0 | APF Club |
| 6 | DF | Hira Kumari Bhujel | 26 December 1995 | 25 | 1 | APF Club |
| 23 | DF | Puja Rana | 28 March 2001 | 1 | 0 | Nepal Army Club |
| DF | Bimala BK | 0 | ||||
| DF | Nisha Thokar | 0 | ||||
| DF | Samikshya Ghimire | 0 | ||||
| DF | Anchali Waiba | 0 | ||||
| 7 | MF | Renuka Nagarkote | 16 April 1995 | 27 | 0 | Kickstart |
| 27 | MF | Saru Limbu | 4 March 2001 | 16 | 0 | Kickstart |
| MF | Bimala Chaudhary | |||||
| 11 | MF | Anita Basnet | 27 December 1994 | 26 | 4 | Lords FA Kochi |
| MF | Preeti Rai | |||||
| MF | Dipa Shahi | |||||
| 9 | FW | Sabitra Bhandari | 23 May 1996 | 40 | 42 | Hapoel Ra'anana A.F.C. (women) |
| 25 | FW | Anita KC | 25 June 1997 | 9 | 0 | APF Club |
| 2 | FW | Sabita Rana Magar | ||||
| 2 | FW | Rashmi Kumari Ghising | ||||
| 2 | FW | Amisha Karki | ||||
| 8 | FW | Rekha Paudel | 9 January 2002 | 5 | 1 | Sports Odisha |
Notable players Edit
-Best goalkeeper of the Year 2013, 2014 and 2015
Honours Edit
Regional Edit
Other tournaments Edit
- Nadezhda Cup
- Runners-up: 2019
- Women's Gold Cup
- Runners-up: 2019
Competitive record Edit
- *Draws include knockout matches decided on penalty kicks.
- ***Red border colour indicates tournament was held on home soil.
FIFA Women's World Cup Edit
| FIFA Women's World Cup record | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Result | Pld | W | D* | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
| 1991 | Did not enter | ||||||||
| 1995 | |||||||||
| 1999 | |||||||||
| 2003 | Withdrew | ||||||||
| 2007 | Did not enter | ||||||||
| 2011 | |||||||||
| 2015 | |||||||||
| 2019 | |||||||||
| 2023 | Did not qualify | ||||||||
| 2027 | To be determined | ||||||||
| Total | 0/8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
AFC Women's Asian Cup Edit
| AFC Women's Asian Cup record | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Result | Pld | W | D* | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
| 1975 | Did not enter (No team) | ||||||||
| 1977 | |||||||||
| 1980 | |||||||||
| 1981 | |||||||||
| 1983 | |||||||||
| 1986 | Group Stage | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 12 | −12 | 0 |
| 1989 | Group Stage | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 25 | −25 | 0 |
| 1991 | Did not enter | ||||||||
| 1993 | |||||||||
| 1995 | |||||||||
| 1997 | |||||||||
| 1999 | Group Stage | 4 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 30 | −29 | 0 |
| 2001 | Did not enter | ||||||||
| 2003 | |||||||||
| 2006 | |||||||||
| 2008 | |||||||||
| 2010 | |||||||||
| 2014 | |||||||||
| 2018 | |||||||||
| 2022 | Did not qualify | ||||||||
| Total | 3/20 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 1 | 67 | –66 | 0 |
SAFF Women's Championship Edit
| SAFF Women's Championship | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Result | Pld | W | D* | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
| 2010 | Runner up | 5 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 34 | 1 | +33 | 12 |
| 2012 | Runner up | 5 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 24 | 4 | +20 | 12 |
| 2014 | Runner up | 5 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 17 | 6 | +11 | 12 |
| 2016 | Semi Final | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 19 | 3 | +16 | 9 |
| 2019 | Runner up | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 11 | 3 | +8 | 9 |
| 2022 | Runner up | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 12 | 1 | +11 | 9 |
| Total | 5/5 | 27 | 21 | 0 | 6 | 117 | 18 | +99 | 63 |
South Asian Games Edit
| South Asian Games record[9] | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Result | Pld | W | D* | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
| 2010 | Silver | 5 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 17 | 9 | +8 | 9 |
| 2016 | Silver | 5 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 9 | 4 | +5 | 10 |
| 2019 | Silver | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 3 | +1 | 6 |
| 2023 | TBD | ||||||||
| Total | 3/3 | 14 | 8 | 1 | 5 | 30 | 16 | +14 | 25 |
Other tournaments Edit
| Host/Year/Tournament Name | Result | Pld | W | D* | L | GF | GA | GD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 Women's Gold Cup | Runners-up | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 6 | 7 | –1 |
| 2019 Nadezhda Cup | Runners-up | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 11 | 7 | +4 |
See also Edit
- Sport in Nepal
- Football in Nepal
- Women's football in Nepal
- Football in Nepal
- All Nepal Football Association
- Nepal women's national under-23 football team
- Nepal women's national under-20 football team
- Nepal women's national under-17 football team
- Nepal national football team
- Nepal national under-20 football team
- Nepal national under-17 football team
- Nepal at the Asian Games
References Edit
- ^ "Niru Thapa chosen captain of women's national football team". The Himalayan Times. 26 October 2018. Retrieved 30 October 2018.
- ^ "The FIFA/Coca-Cola Women's World Ranking". FIFA. 25 August 2023. Retrieved 25 August 2023.
- ^ "NFH – Archived News". Angelfire. Retrieved 4 March 2016.
- ^ "Off-side: In support of the Nepali women footballers". The Kathmandu Post. Retrieved 12 August 2014.
- ^ Richardson, Andy (5 March 2009). "Nepali football – Sportsworld". Al-Jazeera Sportsworld. Retrieved 4 January 2016 – via YouTube.
- ^ . Archived from the original on July 9, 2007. Retrieved 24 February 2014.
- ^ "ANFA | Kumar Thapa appointed as head coach for SAFF Women's Championship". the-anfa.com. Retrieved 2022-09-18.
- ^ "Final women's squad for Bangladesh friendly announced". the-anfa. Retrieved 7 July 2023.
- ^ "South Asian Federation Games (Women's Tournament)". RSSSF. 18 February 2016. Retrieved 1 October 2018.
External links Edit
- Team profile on the-ANFA.com