Indonesia Bidding for 2018 & 2022 World Cup

Indonesian FA Join the Race to Host Football’s Premiere Event

Jan 29, 2009 Luke Broadbent

As time to submit a bid to host the 2018 and 2022 World Cup runs out, Indonesia has launched a shocking bid to be the host of either the 2018 or 2022 Football World Cup.

All prospective hosts for both the 2018 and 2022 FIFA World Cup events must declare their intentions by February 2nd.

With the deadline fast approaching the Football Association of Indonesia have launched a shocking bid to host one of the two tournaments.

Indonesia’s World Cup History

Indonesia is far from a superpower in the world of football; in fact their national team is currently ranked at 144 in the world.

Nevertheless, in 1938, under its colonial guise of the Dutch East Indies they became the first Asian nation to participate in the World Cup finals.

The Dutch East Indies stay in France for the 1938 World Cup was short lived. They fell in the first round to Hungary, who eventually went on to finish second.

Since 1938, neither the Dutch East Indies nor Indonesia has managed to qualify for the World Cup finals.

Indonesia’s Sports Hosting Experience

In 2007 Indonesia was one of the four co-hosts of the Asian Cup, along with Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam.

Despite having hosted Asia’s premiere football tournament, the Asian Football Confederation’s president, Mohammad Bin Hammam, regretted allowing four countries simultaneously host the tournament due to financial and logistic problems.

In October 2008 Indonesia hosted her second multi-sports event, having previously held the 1962 Asian Games in the country’s capital, Jakarta.

Last year Bali, one of many Indonesian islands, played host to the inaugural Asian Beach Games.

Bali had been rocked by terrorist attacks in 2002 and 2005; therefore the hosting of this weeklong event showcased the resilience of the Indonesian people.

Indonesia’s Weak Infrastructure

In comparison to other potential bids Indonesia is lagging behind when it comes to basic infrastructure.

The country is well served internationally with 161 airports with paved runways located within her borders.

Railways in Indonesia are hard to come by, with many of the country’s railroads located on the island of Java.

In order to improve transport in Jakarta, a monorail mass transit is currently under construction.

Indonesia’s Football Stadiums

The biggest stadium in Indonesia is the Bung Karno Stadium in Jakarta. It was opened in 1962, in time for the Asian Games.

At one time the Bung Karno Stadium could hold around 100,000 spectators, however it’s current capacity is 88,000. It hosted the 2007 Asian Cup final between Iraq and Saudi Arabia.

Elsewhere in Indonesia there is the 60,000-seater venue, Palaran Stadium, in Samarinda and the Jakabaring Stadium with a capacity of 55,000, located in Palembang.

The Lagaligo Stadium and the Jalak Harupat Soreang Stadium can hold 55,000 and 40,000 people respectively.

Numerous other stadiums in Indonesia have a capacity of 30,000 or 25,000 people. If Indonesia’s bid for the World Cup is to be taken seriously then some of these stadiums will have to have their capacities increased.

The hosts of both the 2018 and 2022 World Cups will be announced in December 2010.

Other Bids:

Qatar Bidding to Host 2018 & 2022 World Cup

The copyright of the article Indonesia Bidding for 2018 & 2022 World Cup in Soccer is owned by Luke Broadbent. Permission to republish Indonesia Bidding for 2018 & 2022 World Cup in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.