I.League Evaluates Disciplinary Issues in This Season's EPA
The Director of Competitions for I.League, Asep Saputra, has highlighted and evaluated the progress of the youth football development competition, the Elite Pro Academy (EPA), this season. The organizers have emphasized that the level of disciplinary violations among players on the field remains quite high throughout the tournament.
The culmination of this youth competition was officially completed on Sunday (17/5/2026) at the Garudayaksa Football Academy Field, Bekasi. The closing ceremony was marked by the success of the Persija Jakarta 20 squad in winning the EPA Super League U20 title after defeating Malut United U20 with a narrow score of 1-0.
Considering the high tension and violations during the season, I.League recognizes that fostering players’ mental strength is a shared responsibility. “At a young age, they must also be nurtured and trained on how to behave professionally, avoid violating sportsmanship and fair play, and hopefully it will be better in the coming seasons.”
As a reminder, one of the most notable disciplinary violations in this year’s competition occurred in the U20 age group. The incident occurred during a match between Bhayangkara Presisi Lampung and Dewa United Banten at the Citarum Stadium, Semarang, on April 19.
The match ended in chaos in the final minutes, where the national U17 team player from Bhayangkara, Fadly Alberto Hengga, was caught kicking a Dewa United player, Rakha Nurkholis. Although both players eventually agreed to reconcile and shake hands, strict sanctions were still imposed to uphold the rules.
In response to future preventative measures, Asep explained that they have formulated various concrete efforts, including imposing stricter disciplinary sanctions. “When we meet in one forum, we must also strengthen and tighten the campaigns, and of course, the penalties will be in accordance with the existing code of conduct,” he continued. “We hope this will provide a deterrent effect, although we still consider the development aspect within this age range.”