Indonesia has been stripped of the hosting right to the Under-20 football World Cup, FIFA has said in a statement after protests against Israel’s participation led to the cancellation of the tournament’s main draw.
FIFA announced its decision on Wednesday, following a meeting with the Indonesian football federation’s (PSSI) President Erick Thohir, and said a new hosting country would be announced “as soon as possible” with the tournament set to start on May 20.
Indonesia is the World’s most populated Muslim-majority country and does not have formal diplomatic ties with Israel, while publicly supporting the Palestinian cause.
FIFA has decided, due to the current circumstances, to remove Indonesia as the host of the FIFA U-20 World Cup 2023. A new host will be announced as soon as possible, with the dates of the tournament currently remaining unchanged. Potential sanctions against the PSSI may also be decided at a later stage.”
FIFA statement said.
Earlier this month, protesters marched in the capital Jakarta waving flags of Indonesian and Palestinian and demanding Israel not be allowed to participate.
Thohir said in a statement on PSSI’s website, Indonesia is a FIFA member, so for any international soccer matters, we have to abide by the rules. I ask all football lovers to keep their heads held high over this tough decision by FIFA. It’s time we proved to FIFA to work harder to transform soccer, towards clean and high-achieving soccer.
On Tuesday, Indonesia’s President Joko Widodo spoke against mixing matters of sports and politics. He said in a live-streamed address that I hereby guarantee Israel’s participation has nothing to do with the consistency of our foreign policy position towards Palestine because our support for Palestine is always strong and sturdy.
The PSSI said losing the rights of hosting the FIFA Under-20 World Cup would harm Indonesian football teams’ probability of taking part in other FIFA tournaments, while the economic casualties would amount to “trillions of rupiah”.
The Indonesian football federation could be further disciplined by FIFA. A suspension could pull Indonesia from Asia qualifying for the 2026 World Cup, which starts in October.
FIFA and public authorities in Indonesia decided on FIFA’s hosting necessities in 2019 before being chosen to stage the 2021 edition of the Under-20 World Cup. The Covid-19 pandemic pushed the tournament to be postponed for two years.
As host, Indonesia automatically qualified for the Under-20 World Cup, but it has not played in the tournament since 1979. Israel qualified for its first Under-20 World Cup in June.
It is still unclear who could now host the tournament, which was scheduled to be played in six stadiums in Indonesia. Argentina, which did not qualify for the tournament, is reportedly interested in hosting FIFA Under-20 World Cup.
FIFA said that it was committed to aiding the PSSI following a deadly stampede last year that led to the deaths of 135 spectators at a stadium in East Java in October.
Members of the FIFA team will continue to be present in Indonesia in the coming months and will provide the required assistance to the PSSI, under the leadership of President Thohir. A new meeting between the FIFA President and the PSSI President for further discussions will be scheduled shortly.”
FIFA said in the statement.
