Nepal's grassroots sports landscape is on the brink of a historic milestone as the Asian Paints Champions Cup 2026- All Nepal Interschool Football Tournament prepares to unite school communities across all seven provinces. Organised by The Himalayan Times, the country's premier nationwide U-18 inter-school football tournament aims to nurture youth talent, foster school pride, and empower student-athletes through the spirit of healthy competition, teamwork, and leadership.
The nationwide call for registrations generated an overwhelming response from academic institutions across the country. Following a thorough verification process, the field is officially locked in with 356 verified schools fielding a total of 365 competitive teams, comprising 312 U18- Boys' team and 53 U-18 Girls' team.
The tournament kicks off with the Provincial Qualification Rounds running from September 1 to September 12, 2026. Teams across seven provincial hubs will battle through knock out tie sheets to claim their spot as provincial champions. These provincial winners will then compete for the National Championship from September 21 to September 25, where the ultimate U-18 Boys and U-18 Girls Champions will be crowned.
On September 25, 2026 The Himalayan Times will bring together an unprecedented integrated student mega-event that fuses editorial excellence, athletic performance, creativity and competitive challenges on a single platform. Attendees will witness the discovery of the APCC football winners alongside the announcement of champions for the THT School Times Editorial Challenge and the Interschool Cheerleading Competition.
Ahead of the opening match, the APCC Trophy Tour will travel across key regional hubs starting August 27, featuring early morning reveal events at flagship host schools. The tour begins in Nepalgunj on August 27 at Holyland English Secondary School, followed by Dhangadhi on August 28 at Balmiki International School. It then heads to Pokhara on August 30 at Bishnu Paduka Secondary School, Chitwan on August 31 at Valmiki Shiksha Sadan, Sarlahi on September 1 at Shree Narayan Higher Secondary School, and concludes in Biratnagar on September 2 at Bal Kalyan Vidhya Mandir.
This monumental initiative is made possible through the support of leading national partners committed to youth empowerment and sports development: Title Sponsor Asian Paints, Powered By partner Ncell, Mobility Partner BYD, Banking Partner Global IME Bank, Insurance Partner Surya Jyoti Life Insurance, and Hydration Partner BAM BAM.