JAKARTA - PSSI confirmed that two Indonesian League 1 clubs Persija and Bali United will represent Indonesia in the 2021 AFC Cup, based on the results of the PSSI Executive Committee (Exco) meeting on Wednesday, December 16.
Quoted by Antara from the PSSI official website on the same day, the decision was taken because Bali United was the champion of the Indonesian League 1 in the 2019 season and Persija was in second place in the 2018-2019 Indonesian Cup.
"Apart from that, the two teams also met the requirements after obtaining a professional club license in the AFC Club Licensing Cycle 2020 process," said PSSI Chairman Mochamad Iriawan.
Iriawan also hopes that Persija and Bali United can provide the best achievements in the 2021 AFC Cup.
Indeed, Indonesia's representation in the AFC Cup is determined by the club's last position when the Indonesian League 1 is complete and the final result of the national tournament or in this case the Indonesian Cup.
However, due to the closure of the 2020 League 1 and 2 Indonesia seasons and the latest Indonesian Cup not yet taking place due to the COVID-19 pandemic, PSSI was forced to make a direct appointment for the 2021 AFC Cup.
Persija and Bali United are the two clubs that have won the AFC professional license in 2020 along with five other clubs namely Persipura, Bhayangkara FC, Borneo FC, Persib and Arema FC.
This licensing requirement has made PSM Makassar unable to participate in the 2021 AFC Cup even though they won the 2018-2019 Indonesian Cup and had appeared in the 2020 AFC Cup.
As for the AFC Cup 2020, in the process, the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) was discontinued because the spread of COVID-19 was not yet under control in most parts of Asia.
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