LALITPUR: A 24-member Nepali youth team on Friday left for Iran to participate in the AFC Under-13 Festival of Football to be held in Tehran from May 19-23.

Basanta Thakali and Rabin Joshi are the managers of the Nepali squad that will be divided into two teams during the festival. Teams from Nepal, Iran, Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Pakistan and Sri Lanka will take part in the festival.

Ashit Tamang, Nabin Gurung, Bibek Basnet, Kundan Gurung, Prabin Tamang Moktan, Aditya Chaudhary, Rishi Thapa Magar, Suraj Kumar Rai, Anil Gurung, Rungari Hang Rai, Heman Gurung, Anjan Lakhaju, Yugal Pandey, Suraj Hamal, Aita Raj Limbu, Pramal Thapa, Umesh Thapa, Rajan Maharjan, Shikhar Mani Kafle, Birendra Bahadur Chand, Sanjay Rajbahak and Firon Magarati are the players in the team.

Coach Chet Narayan Shrestha, former national team players Nabin Neupane and Basanta Gauchan and national referees Nani Ram Thapa and Srijana Bartaula have already left for Iran to take the AFC training. Neupane and Gauchan were selected as the future coaches, while Thapa and Bartaula the future referees. Member Secretary of National Sports Council Jeevan Ram Shrestha and All Nepal Football Association President Ganesh Thapa among others bade farewell to the team.