Agum pledges uninterrupted soccer league
JAKARTA (JP): Newly appointed All Indonesia Soccer Federation (PSSI) chief Lt. Gen. Agum Gumelar guaranteed on Saturday that the upcoming league would run as planned.
In his statement read by the federation's deputy chairman in charge of organizational affairs, Eddi Elison, Agum said he found no legitimate reason to stop the league despite the mounting economic and political concerns.
"The show must go on no matter what. If we have to wait until the country's economic and political situation returns to normal, we will never stage the league," Agum said as quoted by Antara.
"A premature end to the league will only disrupt all the plans we have already arranged, particularly our preparations for three international competitions next year."
Eddi read Agum's speech while opening a congress held by PSSI's West Nusa Tenggara branch in Mataram.
The national soccer team's international duties next year include the Asia Oceania Olympics qualifying round, the Asian Championship and the Southeast Asian Games in Brunei.
"Building a strong team for those events is impossible without good planning. That's why we're out to keep the league going until it finishes," said Agum, who is also governor of the National Resilience Institute.
Indonesia is serving an indefinite suspension imposed by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) following a bizarre match it played with Thailand in the Tiger Cup early last month. The AFC will decide the fates of both Indonesia and Thailand after completing its investigation into the case later this month.
The Indonesian league kicks off on Nov. 1, with 10 matches played simultaneously across the country. A total of 28 clubs are in the league, the fifth season since the reintroduction of foreign players.
PSSI terminated the league during the course of a season last May due to security concerns and the massive economic turbulence that forced several clubs to disband.
The soccer body has struck a sponsorship deal with Hong Kong- based promoter Starpoint, but still has to provide each club with a Rp 100 million subsidy. (amd)