Fifa preferred to avoid a situation that could become untenable on the occasion of the Men’s Under-20 Football World Cup, scheduled from May 20 to June 11 in Indonesia. The organization of this U20 World Cup was indeed withdrawn from Indonesia on Wednesday, due to a political imbroglio that prevented the draw from being held. “A new host country will be appointed as soon as possible, the dates of the competition remaining unchanged for the moment”, specifies the world football body in a press release, referring to possible “sanctions” with regard to the Indonesian football federation. (ISSP).
Fifa does not offer a more precise explanation than “the current context”, but the cancellation of the draw for the tournament, scheduled for last Friday in Bali, had justified an emergency meeting this Wednesday between the president of the PSSI Erick Thohir and that of Fifa, Gianni Infantino. An Indonesian football official linked the decision to comments by the governor of Bali opposing the presence of Israel during this competition, while the two countries have no diplomatic relations and Jakarta is a strong supporter of the cause Palestinian.
135 supporters died in October in a stadium
The Under-20 World Cup, which brings together 24 teams, was to be the most important tournament ever organized by the archipelago, with several cities mobilized from May 20 to June 11. The organizers planned, to avoid unrest, to play the Israeli team, qualified for the first time in its history, in Bali. The population of this island is indeed mostly Hindu, while Indonesia has the largest Muslim population in the world. But the opposition of the regional governor questioned this project. Last week, demonstrations opposing Israel’s participation took place in the Indonesian capital, Jakarta. Flags of Indonesia and Palestine were waved there.
Indonesia remains bruised by one of the worst disasters in the history of this sport. Last October, 135 fans lost their lives in a giant stampede at a stadium in East Java. “While potential sanctions against the PSSI could be taken in due course, FIFA would like to make it clear that this decision in no way calls into question” its support for the PSSI to “help Indonesian football overcome the tragedy of last October,” said the Zurich body.