JAKARTA Indonesia is threatened with sanctions by the parent of FIFA international football if the 2023 U-20 World Cup is not held due to the rejection movement against the Israeli national team.
Senior football observer, Mohamad Kusnaeni, said that in order not to happen, the government and the local government and committee should work together well to avoid the worst.
"The tough threat accompanies Indonesia if the incident of Indonesia cancels hosting the U-20 World Cup. Don't play with the agreement [which] was made with FIFA," said Kusnaeni, in Jakarta, Friday, March 24.
The threat of the cancellation of Indonesia as the host emerged as the movement against the national team of Israel as a participant in the tournament which was attended by the 24 teams.
The rejection clearly contradicts the basic principles of FIFA, which has been known as an anti-discrimination organization. Moreover, Israel has legally qualified for the U-20 World Cup through a qualifying path.
Kusnaeni said that if until Indonesia canceled its host because of the rejection, there is a possibility that the sanctions given by FIFA would be much tougher than in 2016.
"The presence of the Israeli national team cannot be rejected. But at least we can minimize their presence through their national symbols. That's not a new thing. At the Olympics, Russia was like that," said Kusnaeni.
If subject to sanctions from FIFA, the world of national football will automatically be affected. Among them, the country's best players miss the opportunity to compete on the international stage.
In the 2015-2016 period, Indonesia had experienced the bitter sanctions from FIFA, ostracized from the international stage. Because it is prohibited from taking part in official events, Indonesia's ranking has dropped dramatically.
Even at the domestic level, the competition is increasingly difficult to get sponsors because large companies will definitely think again about investing in clubs and PSSI. If that happens, it is very likely that the competition will be stuck.
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