50 days before the opening of the WC… ‘Kim Eun-joong’ jumps, venue change → plan revision inevitable
A thunderbolt fell on ‘Kim Eun-joong’ ahead of the World Cup. The change of venue was confirmed 50 days before the opening. It is an unprecedented situation. 스포츠토토
On the 30th (Korean time), the International Football Federation (FIFA) revokes Indonesia’s right to host the 2023 U-20 World Cup in May. decided to find a new host country. The new host country will be announced as soon as possible. Provisional sanctions against the Indonesian Football Association (PSSI) will be decided at a later date.”
The background of the cancellation is interpreted as a complex problem in which political and religious issues are combined. Indonesia is the country with the largest number of Muslims in the world. Although Islam is not the state religion, 80% of the population is Muslim. Anti-Israel sentiment is strong in Indonesia because of Israel’s repression against its brother Palestine. The Indonesian government has long supported Palestinian independence and has no diplomatic relations with Israel.
In particular, recently, strong Islamic groups in Indonesia have even threatened to kidnap Israeli athletes if they enter the country. There have been speculations that FIFA may change the host country to protect the Israeli squad. Indonesian President Joko Widodo (Joko Widodo) said, “We are confident that Israel’s participation in the Games will not change our foreign policy and position in any way, as our support for Palestine is strong and unwavering.” Please don’t confuse me”, but it wasn’t enough.
FIFA canceled the U-20 World Cup group draw ceremony scheduled to be held in Bali, Indonesia on the 31st. It was a situation with less than a week left before the lottery ceremony. An official from the Korea Football Association (KFA) said, “FIFA announced the cancellation through a short statement. There was no explanation.
The Korean U-20 national team, led by coach Kim Eun-joong, finished tied with Japan for third place at the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) U-20 Asian Cup, which recently ended. He won the U-20 World Cup ticket given to the top four teams in the tournament. In 2019, they are sweating hard to continue the ‘runner-up myth’. However, the sudden cancellation of the venue made it inevitable to revise the ‘plan’.
Initially, after participating in the group drawing ceremony, coach Kim planned to analyze the opponent country, find a practice partner, and depart for the decisive battle. However, as the group lottery itself has been postponed, it is necessary to revise the plan and change the schedule. A KFA official said, “Although exact guidelines have not come down from FIFA, we are preparing for the tournament on May 20, the scheduled opening date. We will respond according to the situation.”
Currently, the Argentine Football Association has officially submitted a request to FIFA to host the U-20 World Cup on behalf of Indonesia. At the end of this year, Peru, the host of the U-17 World Cup, and Qatar, which hosted the World Cup last year, are also being discussed to replace Indonesia.