Himal Press 
KATHMANDU: In a bizarre turn of events, the All Nepal Football Association has cancelled its scheduled international friendly against Hong Kong, citing stadium unavailability.
Issuing a statement on Sunday, ANFA said the friendly scheduled for Wednesday at the Dasharath Stadium had to be postponed after it failed to secure necessary approvals and facilities from the National Sports Council (NSC).
The Dasharath Stadium is under the NSC’s ownership.
According to ANFA, it had formally requested permission from the NSC on February 22 to use the stadium and grounds for the friendly match. “A follow-up request was sent on March 17, seeking approval to use essential infrastructure, including floodlights, scoreboard, and other match-related facilities. However, the NSC did not grant approval for the use of the stadium or provide the required infrastructure,” ANFA said in the statement. “Because of this, we had to cancel the match.”
ANFA also apologised to Nepali football fans for the inconvenience caused by the abrupt decision.
However, NSC has refuted claims that it had denied ANFA permission to host the match at the Dasharath Stadium.
On March 10, the NSC wrote a letter to the ANFA, giving it the go-ahead to use the stadium and necessary facilities. NSC had told ANFA to deposit Rs 45,000 for the use of facilities such as sound system, floodlights, and scoreboard.
