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Indonesia has been removed from the hosting of this year’s FIFA Under-20 World Cup because of its objection to the participation of Israel, who have qualified for the first time.
After a meeting between fellow International Olympic Committee members Gianni Infantino, the FIFA President, and Erick Thohir, President of the Football Association of Indonesia (PSSI), world football’s governing body announced that, “due to the current circumstances”, Indonesia would no longer stage the event.
Indonesia is the world’s most populous Muslim-majority nation, with about 277 million people, and it does not have formal diplomatic relations with Israel.
Due to the issue involved the 24-team World Cup draw due to take place in Bali was postponed, and protests against Israel’s participation were also held in the Indonesian capital Jakarta last week by conservative Islamic groups.
The Governor of Bali, Wayan Koster, called for a ban on Israel because of Indonesia’s diplomatic support for Palestine.
The six stadiums due to have been used for the 52-game tournament included one in Gianyar in Bali.
According to a FIFA release a new host for the World Cup, which is due to place from May 20 to June 11, will be announced “as soon as possible, with the dates of the tournament currently remaining unchanged.”
FIFA added, “Potential sanctions against the PSSI may also be decided at a later stage.”
Indonesia’s governing body now risks being suspended by FIFA.
That sanction could remove Indonesia from Asian qualifying for the 2026 FIFA World Cup that is due to start in October.
Indonesian football and public authorities agreed to FIFA’s hosting requirements in 2019 before being selected to host the 2021 edition of the Under-20 World Cup.
The COVID-19 pandemic forced the tournament to be postponed for two years.
Israel qualified last June for its first-ever Under-20 World Cup, when it reached the semi-finals of the Under-19 European Championship.
The team went on to lose the final to England.
It is the latest setback for the sport in Indonesia after the disaster at the Kanjuruhan Stadium in Malang Regency in East Java last October when 135 spectators were killed and nearly 600 injured following a match between Arema and Persebaya Surabaya.
The disaster was the second deadliest in the history of football after the 1964 Estadio Nacional disaster in Peru which killed 328 people.
The FIFA release continued:”FIFA would like to underline that despite this decision, it remains committed to actively assisting the PSSI, in close co-operation and with the support of the Government of President Widodo, in the transformation process of Indonesian football following the tragedy that occurred in October 2022.
“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.”
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Mike Rowbottom, one of Britain’s most talented sportswriters, covered the London 2012 and Rio 2016 Olympics and Paralympics as chief feature writer for insidethegames, having covered the previous five summer Games, and four winter Games, for The Independent. He has worked for the Daily Mail, The Times, The Observer, The Sunday Correspondent and The Guardian.
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For nearly 15 years now, insidethegames.biz has been at the forefront of reporting fearlessly on what happens in the Olympic Movement. As the first website not to be placed behind a paywall, we have made news about the International Olympic Committee, the Olympic and Paralympic Games, the Commonwealth Games and other major events more accessible than ever to everybody.
insidethegames.biz has established a global reputation for the excellence of its reporting and breadth of its coverage. For many of our readers from more than 200 countries and territories around the world the website is a vital part of their daily lives. The ping of our free daily email alert, sent every morning at 6.30am UK time 365 days a year, landing in their inbox, is as a familiar part of their day as their first cup of coffee.
Even during the worst times of the COVID-19 pandemic, insidethegames.biz maintained its high standard of reporting on all the news from around the globe on a daily basis. We were the first publication in the world to signal the threat that the Olympic Movement faced from the coronavirus and have provided unparalleled coverage of the pandemic since.
As the world begins to emerge from the COVID crisis, insidethegames.biz would like to invite you to help us on our journey by funding our independent journalism. Your vital support would mean we can continue to report so comprehensively on the Olympic Movement and the events that shape it. It would mean we can keep our website open for everyone. Last year, nearly 25 million people read insidethegames.biz, making us by far the biggest source of independent news on what is happening in world sport.
Every contribution, however big or small, will help maintain and improve our worldwide coverage in the year ahead. Our small and dedicated team were extremely busy last year covering the re-arranged Olympic and Paralympic Games in Tokyo, an unprecedented logistical challenge that stretched our tight resources to the limit.
The remainder of 2022 is not going to be any less busy, or less challenging. We had the Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games in Beijing, where we sent a team of four reporters, and coming up are the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, the Summer World University and Asian Games in China, the World Games in Alabama and multiple World Championships. Plus, of course, there is the FIFA World Cup in Qatar.
Unlike many others, insidethegames.biz is available for everyone to read, regardless of what they can afford to pay. We do this because we believe that sport belongs to everybody, and everybody should be able to read information regardless of their financial situation. While others try to benefit financially from information, we are committed to sharing it with as many people as possible. The greater the number of people that can keep up to date with global events, and understand their impact, the more sport will be forced to be transparent.
Support insidethegames.biz for as little as £10 – it only takes a minute. If you can, please consider supporting us with a regular amount each month. Thank you.
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