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Fifa withdrew the organization of the next Men’s Under-20 World Cup (May 20 – June 11) from Indonesia on Wednesday. She will announce “as soon as possible” the name of the new host country for this competition which takes place every two years.
The Under-20 World Cup (20 May – 11 June) will not take place in Indonesia. FIFA withdrew the organization of this competition from this Asian country, due to a political imbroglio which prevented the holding of the draw.
“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, citing possible “sanctions” against 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 on Wednesday afternoon between the president of the PSSI Erick Thohir and that of Fifa, Gianni Infantino.
Israel at the heart of the controversy
An Indonesian football official had linked this decision to comments by the governor of Bali opposing the presence of Israel during this competition – the two countries have no diplomatic relations and Jakarta is a fervent supporter of the Palestinian cause.
The Under-20 World Cup, which brings together 24 teams, was to be the most important tournament ever organized by the archipelago, hosted by several cities from May 20 to June 11. Israel qualified there for the first time.
To avoid unrest, the organizers planned to play the Israeli team in Bali, an island whose population is mainly Hindu, while Indonesia has the largest Muslim population in the world. But the opposition of the regional governor questioned this project.
“I did my best. After delivering a letter from President Jokowi and discussing extensively with Fifa President Gianni Infantino, we have to accept Fifa’s decision to cancel the event we were expecting. both looking forward to it,” Erick Thohir said after the talks, according to a statement from the Indonesian FA.
“Fifa considers that the current situation cannot continue, we must submit,” he added.
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 make it clear that this decision in no way calls into question ‘its support for the PSSI’ in helping Indonesian football overcome the tragedy of last October,” said the Zurich body.
With AFP