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Soccer frenzy sets in for World Cup kick off
National colors: A vendor arranges the soccer national team jerseys in his shop in Pasar Baru, Central Jakarta, on Wednesday
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National colors: A vendor arranges the soccer national team jerseys in his shop in Pasar Baru, Central Jakarta, on Wednesday. Replicas of World Cup team jerseys are selling across the city for between Rp 30,000 (US$2.50) and Rp 150,000. (JP/DON) (US$2.50) and Rp 150,000. (JP/DON)
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span class="inline inline-none">National colors: A vendor arranges the soccer national team jerseys in his shop in Pasar Baru, Central Jakarta, on Wednesday. Replicas of World Cup team jerseys are selling across the city for between Rp 30,000 (US$2.50) and Rp 150,000. (JP/DON)
Civilians and staff of government institutions alike are ready to follow the month-long 2014 FIFA World Cup through public viewing programs known locally as nonton bareng, abbreviated to nobar, as the globe's biggest soccer spectacle ' which kicks off on Thursday (Friday in Jakarta) ' grips the country.
The Youth and Sports Ministry is cooperating with local TV channel ANTV, which will air the World Cup matches live along with TVOne, to turn the ministry's front yard into a rumah bola (soccer house) to serve as a public viewing area.
'Especially for the kickoff night on Thursday, we have erected an entertainment stage for a live broadcast,' Youth and Sports Minister Roy Suryo Notodiprojo told a press conference on Wednesday. The event will also feature local singers.
The first nobar event, according to Roy, would be attended by dozens of ambassadors, including those representing Brazil and Croatia, whose national teams will face off in the World Cup opener on Thursday.
'For the remaining matches, people can watch the soccer matches together in our theater room. The rumah bola will always be open to people for free as it is one of our programs to familiarize people with sports,' Roy said.
He added that the ministry would hold similar nobar events in other cities such as Medan in North Sumatra, Surabaya in East Java, Makassar in South Sulawesi and Jayapura in Papua.
According to ANTV off-air promo manager Adrian A. Gunawan, ANTV has prepared nobar events for 13 different locations in Jakarta and its satellite cities, most of which will be held in cafés and shopping malls.
'But our studio [in Kuningan] will also be opened to members of the public who want to watch World Cup matches for free. Unfortunately, due to limited capacity, they have to reserve places beforehand,' he said.
Japanese convenience store chain FamilyMart is using the opportunity to provide extra services to its customers, who are mostly people in their 20s.
'We have bought the license from PT Nonton Bareng. All of our customers are welcome to watch the matches with their friends or just to hang out with other soccer fans at our outlets,' said Henny, a PT Fajar Mitra Indah marketing staff member, referring to FamilyMart stores.
PT Nonton Bareng is the sole coordinator of nobar activities in Indonesia, having been appointed by PT Inter-Sports Marketing Indonesia.
According to PT Nonton Bareng general manager Sandy Anugerah, this year the company has received and approved around 1,600 proposals for nobar activities across the nation, slightly less than the period preceding the 2010 World Cup, when it received and approved around 2,000 proposals.
'That's because this year's World Cup will coincide with the presidential election [on July 9] and Ramadan [fasting] month,' Sandy said. The month-long Muslim fasting season will begin on June 28 or June 29.
Indonesian soccer fans have been pampered by free live broadcasts since 1990 when RCTI was granted the broadcast package of the World Cup in Italy.
TVOne obtained the package rights after winning the bid in 2011, according to sports manager Johannes Indra.
'All local TV stations joined the bidding,' Indra said. He refused to reveal the value of the package.
'We pushed to win the World Cup package because we want to improve our image as sports channels. Moreover, soccer is the world's most popular sport,' he said.
Several matches are scheduled to be held late in the evening or in the wee hours, Jakarta time, like in the 2010 World Cup. But some matches will take place in the late morning, which could prompt Indonesian fans to adjust their work schedules.
Indra said that fans who miss morning matches can watch replays at 2 p.m.
In Bali, flags of nations participating in the World Cup can be seen on the streets of Denpasar and in cafés.
In Sanur, also in Bali, World Cup accessories including jerseys, jackets and caps can be seen at Six Point Café, which has decided to air World Cup matches for the whole month. The café's management has put up two big screens that will be able to show two different matches at once.
'We have adjusted our workers' shifts so that we can serve our customers, who will watch their favorite teams' matches even though they are aired in the wee hours,' the café's operational manager
Nyoman Segel Suryanta said.
A die-hard fan of the English team, Jojo Raharjo, said that he planned to join the nobar events on offer at several locations near his house in Ciledug, Tangerang, especially when his team and other big teams play.
Fikri Zaki Muhammadi contributed to this article.
