Indonesia Nears World Cup Bid Endgame as Time Runs Out

Indonesia’s slim hopes of hosting the 2022 World Cup finals are expected to end in the next 24 hours as the deadline for letters of governmental support passes.

As part of the bidding process, FIFA requires letters providing governmental guarantees on a wide range of criteria to be submitted to its Zurich headquarters by Feb. 9.

Although Indonesian Football Association (PSSI) President and World Cup bid leader Nurdin Halid met the Indonesia’s sports minister Andi Mallarangeng on Friday, Halid seemed no closer to extracting the necessary guarantees off his government.

“There are still things to be verified before we make a decision,” Mallarangeng was quoted by the Jakarta Globe.

“We set our priority to revitalize the nation’s football performance. That’s why the president showed his concern and asked national football stakeholders to work together to improve the national team’s performance, so we can play in the World Cup — wherever it is.”

Halid dismissed the delay as “just an administrative matter”, and told local press that the PSSI will continue the bid process without government support - unless FIFA disqualified Indonesia.

But the reality facing him is that it will take a radical change by the government to keep the PSSI’s faltering hopes alive.

Halid’s enemies used the Indonesian media over the weekend to claim that the bid was all but dead and to state that the government “no longer trusts” PSSI officials.

Mallarangeng’s position remains unchanged from when he previously held talks with Halid last month.

“For us, the most important thing is to focus on the game’s development and improve our performance," he said in January. "It would be a point of pride to qualify for the World Cup finals, wherever they are held, and a source of shame should we keep losing.”

Written by James Corbett

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