Indonesia, deprived of hosting the U-20 World Cup, lost even its dream

Something happened that shouldn’t happen in the international sports scene. Even the dreams of 20-year-old players who have to pursue their dreams have been shattered due to religious conflicts among adults. I’m talking about Indonesia.

The International Football Federation (FIFA) announced on its official website on the 30th (Korean time) that it would revoke Indonesia’s right to host the FIFA U-20 World Cup.

This incident started when Israel, which had passed the European qualifiers, participated in the tournament. Indonesia, a representative Muslim country in Southeast Asia, has strong anti-Israel sentiment due to Israel’s oppression of the Palestinians.

Because of this, public opinion simmered that Israel should not participate in the tournament. The Indonesian president appealed that politics, religion, and sports are separate, but with the general elections ahead, even the ruling party expressed its intention to refuse Israel’s participation in the tournament in order to gain support from the people.

However, Indonesia’s judgment was a mistake. Indonesia holds the right to host, but FIFA is the host. This is because Indonesia does not have the right to reject a country that has passed the qualifiers and qualified for the finals in FIFA-sponsored competitions.

Now all the damage goes to Indonesia. Due to Corona 19, the 2021 competition could not be held, so in a situation where they waited for two more years, they could not even hold the competition at all. All of the expenses incurred in preparation for the event have been blown away.

The Indonesian Football Association should also be prepared to receive disciplinary action from FIFA. It is unknown what the level of punishment will be, but depending on the case, you may not be able to go to the FIFA World Cup Asian qualifiers to be held in the United States, Canada, and Mexico in 2026. Since the number of tickets for the finals allocated to Asia has increased to 8, excluding playoff tickets, Indonesia has a chance to challenge the finals, but it may end up not being able to play the qualifying rounds at all. 안전놀이터

Worse still, 20-year-olds are not eligible for the FIFA U-20 World Cup. Indonesia automatically qualified for the tournament as the host country, but the opportunity was lost due to the loss of the right to host. If the tournament is played in a country that has already qualified for the finals, Indonesia may have a glimmer of hope, but they are unwilling to wait for the FIFA disciplinary action.

In addition, countries such as Argentina, Peru, and Qatar who have not obtained tickets to the finals are discussing ways to play instead. If this happens, the automatic qualification will be passed, so the final round will be lost for the first time in 44 years since the 1979 tournament. The damage will be borne by Gosran and the 20-year-old young players.

Coach Shin Tae-yong, who trained players for a long time, also expressed his frustration.

In an interview with CNN Indonesia, coach Shin said, “My heart aches because the dreams and hopes of young players have disappeared.” It could have been of great help to the development, but it is regrettable.”