PSSI chairman Erick Thohir will fly to Doha, Qatar, to meet FIFA on Wednesday, the 29th of March morning, Western Indonesian Time. He requested prayers that the U-20 World Cup would not be cancelled.
Erick Thohir will lead an effort to save the fate of the 2023 U-20 World Cup, which is currently in jeopardy. Due to the fact that Israel’s participation received numerous rejections, resulting in the cancellation of the World Cup draw in Bali.
Previously, Indonesian President Joko Widodo explained in a statement on Tuesday, 28th of March, that he would guarantee Israel can compete at the 2023 U-20 World Cup in Indonesia. Erick Thohir will bring Jokowi’s message to FIFA as diplomatic material to pledge.
“I have received orders from the president to leave immediately, as well as diplomatic action to find a solution for Indonesian football. Of course, as I previously stated, this is not an easy task, and I will do my best,” said Erick Thohir on the sidelines of the Indonesian national team’s match against Burundi on Tuesday, the 28th of March evening Western Indonesian Time.
“Please pray for all of us who have been assigned to get the best results. Yes, and I hope there will be prayers from all Indonesians,” he added.
The BUMN minister was hesitant to reveal how much bargaining power Indonesia would bring to FIFA diplomacy. In essence, Indonesia is willing to accept any input from the world’s football federation in order for the U-20 World Cup to take place in Indonesia.
Because, if the U-20 World Cup is cancelled, Indonesia will suffer a significant loss. Furthermore, a significant amount of time and money has been spent in preparation for this biennial event.
“Yes, of course, I’ll leave tonight at 1 a.m., arriving at 6 a.m. “Yes, definitely, we have to, because this is a FIFA event, so, of course, we must first hear it from FIFA’s perspective and what the consequences will be,” Erick Thohir explained.
“So that’s where we can start talking about finding a space for the best solution.” So, if I’m asked for details, I’m not ready to explain it yet; of course, we’ll see tomorrow; the meeting is scheduled for 1 to 5 p.m.,” he concluded.
As previously reported, FIFA has cancelled the draw for the U-20 World Cup in Bali on Saturday, 25th of March, despite the fact that the world football federation has yet to send PSSI an official letter.
The drawing event to select the U-20 World Cup participants was originally scheduled for the 31st of March in Bali. The event was cancelled due to the Governor of Bali and the Provincial Government of Bali’s refusal to accept the Israeli national team to compete at the event.
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