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BORNEONEWS, Surabaya – Although it failed to host the U-20 World Cup in 2024, Indonesia still gained the confidence to host the U-17 World Cup in the same year. The event will be held from November 10 to December 2, 2023.

Initially, the 2023 U-17 World Cup was held in Peru. However, the South American country withdrew due to unprepared infrastructure.

Meanwhile, Indonesia was supposed to host the 2023 U-20 World Cup from May 20 to June 11. However, the International Football Federation or FIFA revoked this right following the rejection of a number of regional heads against one of the participants, namely Israel. As a replacement, FIFA then chose Argentina as host.

Instead of “moving on”, FIFA proposed a sort of “compensation” or barter, namely the appointment of Indonesia as host of the 2023 U-17 World Cup, replacing Peru. There will be no more controversy because the Israeli national team (Timnas) is not included in the qualifiers.

Four stadiums will host the match, namely Jakarta International Stadium (JIS), Si Jalak Harupat Stadium in Bandung, Manahan Stadium in Solo and Gelora Bung Tomo Stadium (GBT) in Surabaya.

In preparation, the Indonesian U-17 national team has been holding training camps in Jakarta, Bali and Solo since July 9, 2023.

The list of countries or participants in the 2023 U-17 World Cup are Argentina, Brazil, Burkina Faso, Canada, Ecuador, England, France and Germany. Next are the host national teams, Indonesia, Iran, Japan, South Korea, Mali and Mexico.

Apart from this, there are also Morocco, New Caledonia, New Zealand, Panama, Poland, Senegal, Spain, United States, Uzbekistan and Venezuela.

Profit

As the host of the 2023 U-17 World Cup, Indonesia will enjoy three advantages, namely, firstly, the opportunity for the Indonesian U-17 national team to participate in international events.

This is definitely a golden opportunity for the Indonesian U-17 national team to appear at the international level and at the same time be able to raise the level of play of Garuda Muda, because they have to face the strongest national teams from different country.

Second, gaining international trust, with FIFA placing its trust in Indonesia to replace Peru as host of the 2023 U-17 World Cup. This also proves that Indonesia is considered capable of organizing a international event by FIFA.

Finally, the tourism sector has developed. This international tournament will definitely attract the attention of the international world. This is what will increase tourism in the country.

The sectors that benefit the most are the accommodation sector, food and beverage supply and transport.

This is why central and regional governments must take advantage of this gap. Indeed, hosting the U-17 World Cup is not just about football, but also an effort to introduce Indonesian tourism to the world stage.

Separately, General President of the Indonesian Football Federation (PSSI) Erick Thohir confirmed that the opening ceremony of the U-17 World Cup to be held at the GBT Stadium in Surabaya on November 10 will be lively.

The opening will be very interesting because it will be the symbol of the first World Cup in Indonesia. The Garuda Muda team will play their first match against Ecuador which will take place on Friday, November 10 with kick-off at 19:00 WIB.

Aiming to host the U-17 World Cup, Surabaya Municipality (Pemkot) prepared well in advance, starting with carrying out repairs and renovating a number of facilities and infrastructure existing at the GBT stadium.

This includes access to GBT Stadium parking, toilets, lighting, water quality and environmental cleanliness.

In fact, every entrance to GBT Stadium is illuminated by lights. The plants around the GBT Stadium have been rearranged to make it look neat and comfortable. In essence, overall, the GBT Stadium facilities are 100% ready to host the U-17 World Cup.