6 Candidates For The 2023 U-17 World Cup Venue In Indonesia, Is There A JIS Name?

Candidates for the 2023 U-17 World Cup stadium. (Photo via Antara)

JAKARTA - The International Football Federation Council (FIFA) has appointed Indonesia to host the 2023 U-17 World Cup to replace Peru. The South American country failed to meet the infrastructure readiness as the host of the grand event.

Indonesia itself has actually been appointed to host the U-20 World Cup, but canceled due to domestic polemics. The host status was revoked and then given to Argentina.

For the U-20 World Cup, Indonesia has prepared a total of six stadiums that have undergone the verification and inspection process of representatives of FIFA. The six stadiums are Captain I Wayan Dipta (Bali) Stadium, Gelora Bung Tomo Stadium (Surabaya), Manahan Stadium (Solo), Jakabaring Stadium (Palembang), Si Jalak Harupat Stadium (Bandung Regency), and Gelora Bung Karno Main Stadium (Jakarta).

The six stadiums have been declared worthy of holding the U-20 World Cup, although there are still a number of evaluations. Things related to the evaluation, such as parking lots and additional VIP rooms.

Until now, PSSI still has not announced the names of the stadium candidates where the U-17 World Cup matches take place. Recent information states that PSSI has prepared 10 stadiums for the event.

However, it is believed that the six stadiums above are included in the list of potential arenas for the U-17 World Cup.

In one of his directives, President Joko Widodo has also asked PSSI General Chair Erick Thohir to consider other stadiums as the location for the event.

This is mainly because the GBK Main Stadium will be the location for the Coldplay music group concert on November 15. Meanwhile, the U-17 World Cup is scheduled to take place from November 10 to December 2.

The following is a list of alternative stadiums that can be used to host the U-17 World Cup:

1. Jakarta International Stadium

One of the stadiums that are planned to be proposed to be an option for the U-17 World Cup is the Jakarta International Stadium (JIS). However, Erick once said that his party would not carry out renovations of JIS until there was a visit from FIFA.

JIS has never been a venue for international matches between countries so far. However, the stadium was once used to host an International Youth Championship tournament in 2022, which was attended by Barcelona U-18 and Atletico Madrid U18 teams.

At the stadium, Persija Jakarta also held a friendly match against Chonburi FC, with the stadium situation filled with their fans in July 2022.

The main problem with JIS is that the stadium does not have enough parking capacity to accommodate many spectator vehicles during the match. This was because when the stadium was built, the builder wanted to encourage the use of public transportation.

In addition, recently the Minister of Public Works and Public Housing (PUPR) Basuki Hadimuljono also issued a statement that JIS grass was not in accordance with FIFA standards.

2. Wibawa Mukti Stadium Cikarang

Acting Bekasi Regent Dani Ramdan once stated that the proposal to make Wibawa Mukti Stadium an arena for the U-17 World Cup has been communicated to PSSI through the Bekasi Regency Association (Askab).

Wibawa Mukti Stadium has indeed held several international matches. The stadium was once used to be a venue for the 2018 Asian Games, and was used by Persija Jakarta several times as a home in the League 1 competition.

3. Patriot Candrabagha Stadium Bekasi

Patriot Candrabagha Stadium was once the host of the national team when they challenged Vietnam in the AFF U-19 Cup group stage match in 2022. In addition, Patriot Candrabagha Stadium is relatively easy to reach by bus, and the road around the stadium is quite wide. Persija also often used the stadium as a cage when they were unable to play in Jakarta.

Unfortunately, the image of the stadium has recently been bad after experiencing a power outage when it became the venue for Persija's match against Ratchaburi at the end of last June.

4. Pakansari Stadium Bogor

Pakansari Stadium in Bogor has held several international matches. There was once the 2018 AFF Cup final, the 2018 Asian Games final, and the FIFA Match Day Indonesia match against Curacao in 2022.

But it was later discovered that the stadium was undergoing renovations by the Bogor Regency Government and it is estimated that it could only be used by the end of 2023. The League 1 club, which is usually based there, Persikabo, was unable to use the stadium in the first half of the 2023/2024 season competition and had to evacuate to Wibawa Mukti Stadium.

5. Gelora Stadium Bandung Lautan Api

The stadium, which is the headquarters of Persib Bandung, has experience in holding international matches, as was the last time it was Indonesia's home when it played FIFA Match Day against Curacao in September 2022.

Unfortunately, this stadium is experiencing limited transportation access problems. In addition to to toll roads, alternative roads to this stadium are relatively small, and will cause long traffic jams on match day.

6. Jatidiri Stadium Semarang

The stadium, which is the headquarters of PSIS Semarang, has just finished being renovated in stages in January 2023. The latest renovation, which began in 2016, has turned the Jatidiri Stadium into a modern nuance, including the implementation of a single seat system in the audience seats.

However, Jatidiri Stadium is noted to have never been the venue for international matches. So maybe the stadium still needs a feasibility certificate from AFC and FIFA to be able to host national team level matches.