'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
They were already the best supported national team in South Asia and Nepal’s reputation got enhanced after Saturday evening as they defeated Bangladesh 2-0 in the SAFF Championship 2013 opener in front of more than 22,000 passionate fans at Kathmandu’s Dasarath Stadium.
The headlines will be made by goal scorers Anil Gurung and Bharat Khawas but they would be the first ones to admit that it would have been impossible without the backing of their ‘12th man’. There was a real buzz in the city with the locals lining up near the stadium at least six hours before the kickoff time and the atmosphere was electrifying at kickoff.
Trending
Such enthusiasm and passion for the opening match of the SAFF Championship possible hasn’t been seen since the 2003 edition in Bangladesh, and in the end the home advantage proved to be the difference between two teams who don’t differ much technically.
The passion and support from the locals also caught up with Nepal’s Polish-American coaches with the assistant coach even earning a yellow card for excessive celebrations.
The noise levels were incredible throughout the evening and not only during the two goals. Chants of ‘Nepal, Nepal, Nepal’ were heard from time to time while the fans also whistled when Bangladesh had a spell of possession. Cynics might criticize Nepalis for that but in football that’s all part of the game.
Nepal still have a long way to go to emulate the likes of India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Maldives (as co-hosts) and win the tournament on their home soil. But the winning start has given them the ideal platform to push on and the players can be rest assured that the support will only increase in the coming matches. So it is going to get even daunting for Nepal’s next opponents.
More importantly, Nepal football fans have shown the rest of South Asia how to support their own national team. Afghanistan and Maldives national teams are also well followed by their public but Nepal’s passion should be a lesson for the likes of India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Pakistan.
Here’s a gallary of images showing the full capacity crowd at the stadiums. The enthusiasm for SAFF Championship is at its peak in Nepal (click on the images to enlarge):
