Leicester City’s Asmita Ale talks Nepalese Heritage

Leicester City defender Asmita Ale opened up about her Nepalese heritage.

At 18, she was the first Nepalese footballer to sign a professional contract in English football.

Ale joined the Aston Villa academy when she was eight and was rewarded with a contract in 2019.

She went on to become an important part of the Villa side that gained promotion to the Women’s Super League in 2020.

Now at Leicester after her stint at Tottenham, Ale remains the only Nepalese-heritage player in the WSL and was the only footballer from Britain’s South Asian community to play top-division football in England last season.

Asmita Ale has represented England at various youth levels and was most recently involved with England for the inaugural U23 European League.

She said: “I loved playing for England. It’s always been a dream of mine – every little girl would probably dream about playing for their country.

“There’s just something different about playing for your country than just your club. You get the motivation somehow and it’s just great.”

She says her family are her biggest fans and credits her father for her sporty genetics.

Amrit Ale was a former Gurkha soldier in the British Army and during his posting in Nepal, an opportunity arose to be selected for their National Squash team for the South Asian Games.

She said: “My dad grew up in a village in Nepal and was in the Army. He’s really proud.”

Amrit played in the British Forces Hong Kong tournament, an Army tournament in the UK and the Nepal National tournament.

Speaking about her family, Asmita Ale told Sky Sports News:

“Ever since I was younger, they drove me all around England while I played for the Villa Academy – Cambridge, London, Manchester.

“When I played for England, they’d even fly out to different countries to watch me. It’s been so important how supportive they’ve been.”

Traditionally, South Asians have not been as open to the idea of football as a career.

But Ale is lucky to be part of a generation whose parents find sport to be a realistic pathway.

“I know some Asian parents wouldn’t be like that because their heads are more educational, which my parents are too, but they really supported me.”

Ale said her parents have always told her to be proud of her heritage.

She continued: “I love Nepalese food and my mum is a really good cook as well. We have so many celebrations too.

“When I was younger, I used to go to Nepal every single year with my family because most of them live in Nepal.”

“The British Nepalese community is a pretty big thing.

“There’s a lot of Nepalese people, I think, living here, because my parents always seem to go to many weddings and parties, and they love it.

“When I was little, I used to be very quiet. The manager would constantly say to me that I need to speak, that I need to ask for the ball and shout for it.

“I think football has really helped me grow with the different situations and scenarios it puts you in. People who knew me in school would say I’m so confident now.”