Kathmandu, July 5 -- As football enthusiasts across Nepal immerse themselves in the excitement of the FIFA World Cup, the country's own football community finds little to celebrate. Nepal has been plunged into an unprecedented crisis after FIFA imposed an indefinite suspension on the All Nepal Football Association, leaving the future of the nation's most popular sport hanging in the balance.

FIFA cited 'third-party interference' after a dispute triggered by intervention from the National Sports Council, a move that the world governing body considers a violation of the independence required of its member associations. The suspension has brought Nepal's international football activities to a halt and deepened uncertainty surrounding a spor...