The All Nepal Football Association on Monday called applications for the position of the head coach for the national women’s team, announcing that those with a UEFA pro-license can apply for the post.

The ninth Executive Committee meeting of the ANFA held on March 24-25 decided to hire a foreigner with a UEFA pro-license, the highest professional coaching course in football, for the position.

ANFA has stated that the pro-license holder should have a proven track record of success with the senior women’s team or the youth national team.

Following the decision, ANFA organised a separate meeting on April 1, where the concerned stakeholders, including officials from ANFA Women Association, agreed to take the process ahead.

It, however, took the football governing body around three weeks since that meeting to announce the application. ANFA sources informed that there was some delay despite the association getting serious about women’s football.

Nepal’s main target with the foreign coach will be to enter the 2026 AFC Asian Cup, the event that will open Nepal’s door in the fight for a seat in the FIFA World Cup 2031.

But the application notice suggests that the new foreign coach might have only a brief window of time to spend with the players and prepare for the Asian Cup qualifier.

The notice states that the deadline for the applications is May 20. It will then take at least more than a week for the ANFA to finalise the candidate. The coach will have a two-year tenure.

Nepal will have to beat Uzbekistan, Laos and Sri Lanka on June 29, July 2 and July 5, respectively, in Tashkent, the capital city of Uzbekistan, to enter the Asian Cup.

Nepal are the second-best team in the group as per the FIFA Women’s World Ranking. Nepal rank 99 out of 196+ countries and will face 50th-placed Uzbekistan. Laos and Sri Lanka are ranked 107th and 158th, respectively.

Meanwhile, ANFA has also sought a Performance Analyst for the national men’s team, which got a pro-license holder Matt Ross as head coach in March.

ANFA states that the analyst should have at least a Level 1 certificate in fitness course and data analysis in football.