FIFA withdrew the organization of the next Men’s Under-20 World Cup (May 20-June 11) 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 afternoon between the president of the PSSI Érick 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 fervent supporter of the cause Palestinian.
The Under-20 World Cup, which brings together 24 teams, was to be the most important tournament ever organized by the archipelago. Israel qualified there for the first time. The organizers planned to play the Israeli team in Bali, an island with a majority Hindu population while Indonesia has the largest Muslim population in the world, to avoid unrest. But the opposition of the regional governor questioned this project.
Indonesia remains bruised by one of the worst disasters in the history of this sport. Last October, 135 fans lost their lives in a massive stampede at a stadium in East Java. “While potential sanctions against the PSSI could be taken in due course, Fifa would like to clarify 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.
