Aaha! Gold Cup (
Nepali: आहा ! गोल्ड कप ''āhā gōlḍ kap'') is an annual international
football
Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...
tournament held in
Pokhara
Pokhara ( ) is a metropolis, metropolitan city located in central Nepal, which serves as the capital of Gandaki Province. Named the country's "capital of tourism" it is the List of cities in Nepal, second largest city after Kathmandu, with 599,5 ...
,
Nepal
Nepal, officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is mainly situated in the Himalayas, but also includes parts of the Indo-Gangetic Plain. It borders the Tibet Autonomous Region of China Ch ...
, and organized by the
Sahara Club. It was formerly known as the Caravan Gold Cup. It is considered a major football tournament in Nepal, and is therefore endorsed by ANFA Kaski, a district FA of the
All Nepal Football Association
The All Nepal Football Association (ANFA) (Nepali language, Nepali: अखिल नेपाल फुटबल संघ (एन्फा)) is the governing body of football in Nepal. It is responsible for the Nepal national football team, men's ...
.
Background
Sahara Club (Pokhara) have been running a football academy for under-privileged children from the profit of the tournament and donations from various individuals and organisations. At present, there are 30 children at the academy
The major attraction of the cup is the involvement of major clubs of Nepal and some international clubs. The cup is recognized by ANFA and is included in its annual calendar. The tournament is conducted in a knockout format and 12 teams compete for the title. The tournament is the main event keeping the spirit of football alive in Nepal and handsomely rewards the clubs and players. It is also the longest sporting event to be held regularly. For the first time in history in 2019 there were only 10 club competing due to tight schedule of tournament all over Nepal and Date issue.
On the 13th edition of the tournament, English non-league side
Aldershot Town FC
Aldershot Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in Aldershot, Hampshire, England. The team competes in the National League, the fifth level of the English football league system.
The club was founded in the spr ...
entered in the tournament, and thus became the first European (
UEFA
The Union of European Football Associations (UEFA ; ; ) is one of six continental bodies of governance in association football. It governs football, futsal and beach soccer, beach football in Europe and the List of transcontinental countries#A ...
) club to compete in the tournament's history.
Due to the
COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...
, 19th edition of the tournament only featured 8 teams. The 20th edition was held with 1/3 of the spectators allowed by following Covid safety protocols.
Previous winners
Top performing clubs
External links
Aaha Rara Gold Cup official anthemBBC South report
Sahara Club official website
See also
*Birat Gold Cup
Birat Gold Cup ( Nepali: विराट गोल्डकप, previously called the Mahendra Gold Cup) is an annual football tournament held in Biratnagar, the second largest metropolitan city of Nepal. It has been held at the Sahid Rangsala st ...
* Simara Gold Cup
* KP Oli Cup
* Pokhara Cup
* Budha Subba Gold Cup
* Jhapa Gold Cup
References
{{Football in Nepal
Football cup competitions in Nepal
Sport in Pokhara