Virtually every self help book will tell you that role-modeling is a shortcut to attaining success. If you want to be a great speaker - watch Bill Clinton. If you want to make money - read Richard Branson's autobiography (actually it's not that great, but you get the idea). Similarly, if you want to develop football in a country wouldn't it make sense to emulate what they are doing in Brazil, England, Germany, Japan and even Maldives?
This is what is so frustrating about Nepali sports and specifically football. The keys to success are out there for everyone to see, but our administrators are hell bent on unlocking doors using a paper clip.
Take for example the recent British Gurkha Cup, basically Nepal's equivalent to the FA Cup. Virtually every country has an FA Cup which is usually open to only registered football clubs. ANFA, in its infinite wisdom, however, decided to let in rag-tag unregistered regional teams and a Maoist PLA side which has never participated in the Martyrs League before gatecrash the tournament. What ensued were lopsided scorelines that took the luster off of an otherwise pretty decent tournament.
Similarly, Nepali football clubs have decided to allow five foreigners to be signed for the upcoming Martyr's League. As avid readers of Rangasala Blog will know, AFC has encouraged leagues across Asia to adopt 3+1 rule (three foreigners plus an extra Asian foreign player) when it comes to the signing of foreign players. Most leagues across Asia have or are in the process of adopting this rule, but Nepal's football officials don't seem to care.
It is one thing if the rules were being adjusted to address the specific needs of Nepali football, but as we all well know this has nothing to do with finding solutions for Nepal's football peculiarities and everything to do with how completely out of touch with international football many of our football officials are.
