March 29, (THEWILL) – Indonesia has lost its right to host the under-20 soccer World Cup following a FIFA announcement on Wednesday.
The decision comes after the country’s football federation (PSSI) said it cancelled the draw when the Governor of Bali refused to host Israel’s team. FIFA confirmed that a new host for the tournament, which runs from May 20 to June 11, will be announced soon, and that the dates will remain unchanged.
Earlier this month, protesters in the capital, Jakarta, demanded that Israel be banned from participating. Indonesia’s population is mainly Muslim and has seen a rise in religious conservatism creeping into politics in recent years.
The PSSI could face potential sanctions at a later stage. The Federation warned this week that losing the hosting rights would harm the country’s football teams’ chances of participating in other FIFA tournaments, and cause economic losses of “trillions of rupiah.”
In 2022, a deadly stampede during a match led to the deaths of 135 spectators at a stadium in East Java. FIFA said it remained committed to helping the PSSI and would continue to provide support. Indonesia automatically qualified for the Under-20 World Cup as the host nation, but the country has not participated in the tournament since 1979.
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
