Martyr's Memorial A-Division League (
Nepali
Nepali or Nepalese may refer to :
Concerning Nepal
* Anything of, from, or related to Nepal
* Nepali people, citizens of Nepal
* Nepali language, an Indo-Aryan language found in Nepal, the current official national language and a language spoken ...
: शहीद स्मारक ए- डिभिजन लिग; formerly known as the Kathmandu League Championship) is the top divisions of
football in Nepal. Contested by 12 to 16 clubs, it operates on a system of
promotion and relegation within the
Martyr's Memorial B-Division League. The season usually runs from November to March with every team playing each other once and the top six teams reach the Super Six round, where the teams again play each other once. It is officially known as the
Qatar Airways Martyr's Memorial A-Division League.
A new
Nepal National League was created in 2011 to give chance to compete A level tournaments to the clubs outside Kathmandu valley. There were 9 clubs competing in the National League, 5 of which are teams of Martyr's Memorial A-Division League.
History of the league
Prime minister
Padma Shumsher
Field Marshal His Highness Shree Shree Shree Maharaja Sir Padma Shumsher Jung Bahadur Rana ( ne, पद्म शम्शेर जङ्गबहादुर राणा) (5 December 1882 – Calcutta, India, 11 April 1961) was the here ...
started the Ram Janaki Football tournament in 1934 with the objective of solidifying the increasing public interest in football. After the establishment of democracy in 1950, the Nepali Police Force had initial successes, enjoying consecutive hat-trick wins and monopolizing the trophy for several years. The Nepal Football Association received the trophy from them, continuing the tournament in remembrance of national martyrs. The trophy is presented today to the winners of the "Martyr's Memorial League Tournament".
RCT won the trophy three subsequent times (1971–73). 1973 saw the formation of the All Nepal Football Association (ANFA), and the tournament continued under new authority, although there have been periodic stoppages due to financial and other reasons. (For instance, the political and economic turmoil of the 1990s stopped the tournament for several years.) League president,
Ganesh Thapa, at one time revived ANFA (in 1995), but could not continue it for long. Complying with other football power nation rules, Nepal made ANFA its base for selecting the national teams, although the league still struggled to continue going into the 21st century. Financial problems has caused many football clubs to fold and some to postpone their participation with the most recent being
New Road Team, which is the oldest club in Nepal.
Media coverage
ANFA deals with Nepal's popular tv channel
Kantipur Television
Kantipur Television, popularly known as KTV, is a private television station based in Kathmandu, Nepal. The chairman and managing director is Kailash Sirohiya. Launched in July 2002, KTV is licensed for terrestrial and satellite transmission.
Ka ...
and Kantipur Cineplex to broadcast live . From 2nd round Kantipur Tv is also streaming A Division League on YouTube platform.
Teams
Current teams
The following 14 teams will compete in the Martyr's Memorial A-Division League in the 2022–23 season, with two teams promoted from the
B-Division.
Champions
Since the start of the league, 16 different clubs have won the title in 43 tournaments.
Manang Marshyangdi Club have the most (8 titles) under their belt.
Machhindra Football Club are the
current champions.
Championships by team
A-Division clubs in Asia
Martyr's Memorial A-Division clubs participated in the
AFC President's Cup from its foundation in 2005 till its dissolution in 2014. Since 2015, the winners of the Martyr's Memorial A-Division League qualify for the
AFC Cup
The AFC Cup is an annual continental club football competition organised by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC). Under its current rules, the competition is played primarily between clubs from nations that did not receive direct qualifying s ...
. A-Division clubs could also qualify for the
Asian Club Championship before 2004.
AFC President's Cup
AFC Cup
The AFC Cup is an annual continental club football competition organised by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC). Under its current rules, the competition is played primarily between clubs from nations that did not receive direct qualifying s ...
Asian Club Championship
Notes
See also
*
Nepal Super League
The Nepal Super League is Nepal's first professional franchise based football league organised by ''Nepal Sports and Events Management'' (NSEM) in technical support with ANFA.
A total of seven franchises participated in the first tournament w ...
*
Nepal National League
References
External links
FIFA.com– Football at the heart of the Himalayas
*
{{AFC leagues
2
Sports leagues established in 1954
Top level football leagues in Asia
1954 establishments in Nepal