The vote is expected by many Indonesian soccer fans to be a watershed moment for reform, especially for a national association that has been roundly criticized for its entrenched system of patronage and mismanagement.

Newly elected chairman Erick was well aware that the new leadership and executive committee appointees would have to hit the ground running, as they look to pull off sweeping reforms amid a busy year.

“The work isn’t going to be easy; in 94 days’ time, we will host the U-20 World Cup. It is FIFA’s second-biggest event, and our nation’s pride is on the line,” Erick told reporters after his election win in Jakarta.

Indonesia is slated to host the global youth soccer tournament from May until June. A total of 24 countries, including the host nation, are set to compete in six cities across the country.

Analysts have noted the importance of the PSSI for the political ambitions of those competing for the top job, particularly with regard to the money that flows through the governing body and the influence that comes with managing one of the nation’s most popular sports.

Erick was seen as a shoo-in for chairman weeks ahead of the vote, but it was less clear for Zainudin, whose initial victory was negated by a revote before another candidate stepped aside to give the Cabinet minister his win. The Golkar Party politician will now serve in one of two deputy chairmanship positions alongside Ratu Tisha Destria, who previously served as the PSSI’s first female secretary-general.

In his remarks at the start of the congress, Zainudin underlined the importance of the PSSI and the extraordinary congress for the country’s future sporting ambitions. “If the U-20 World Cup goes well, it could provide a foundation for us to host the senior World Cup in the future,” the minister said.

He noted that President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo harbored high ambitions for Indonesian soccer, in accordance with Presidential Instruction (Inpres) No. 3/2019. According to the instruction, the President tasked related ministries and institutions with “taking coordinated and integrated steps according to their purview in order to improve [Indonesia’s] soccer achievements nationally and internationally”.

Despite being in charge of soccer, the PSSI never had any say in the formulation of the executive order, which Zainudin said the government was now trying to rectify. With two ministers occupying the top two positions in the association, experts believe the road is now open for closer collaboration between the state and the PSSI.

Yogyakarta State University (UNY) sports expert Djoko Pekik Irianto told The Jakarta Post that the involvement of the ministers was a sign of growing government dissatisfaction.

“Even with the government’s support, [the PSSI] still hasn't achieved much. The Inpres hasn’t made any inroads as well, so the two ministers will feel obliged to take matters into their own hands,” Djoko said on Thursday.

Fundamental reform

Since the Kanjuruhan Stadium tragedy in Malang, East Java that killed 135 people in October, the government has taken a more active role in Indonesian soccer.

Following a meeting with FIFA president Gianni Infantino at the State Palace after the incident, Jokowi promised a “thorough transformation” of the sport in Indonesia.

Speaking on the sidelines of the Indonesian International Motor Show in Kemayoran, East Jakarta, the President reassured the public that the government had no wish to intervene in the PSSI process.

“But we hope that the new chairman can achieve thorough reform. [...] Our hope is that we can be the best in Southeast Asia first, and the best in Asia later on,” Jokowi was quoted by Kompas daily as saying.

Indonesia currently ranks 151st in the FIFA men’s world soccer ranking and fifth among Southeast Asian nations. Vietnam, the team that eliminated Indonesia in the semifinals of the 2022 AFF Cup in January, is currently ranked 96th and remains the top-ranked team in the region.

Domestically, the new PSSI leadership also has to figure out what to do with Liga 2 and Liga 3, the second and third tiers of the Indonesian soccer league system, respectively.

In January, the PSSI made the decision to suspend both leagues for this season because of Kanjuruhan, a decision against which many clubs in the league pushed back.

But while the newly elected chairman has promised reforms, remnants of the organization’s questionable management still lingered in the election process.

After an earlier announcement declaring Zainudin had won the deputy chairmanship alongside incumbent PSSI secretary-general Yunus Nusi, several PSSI voters accused the executive committee of rigging the vote.

“We the voters were furious with the actions of the old executive committee members. [...] We protested because some of the names we voted for were missing,” Persiba Balikpapan representative Togar Simanjuntak told reporters.

After departing PSSI chairman Mochamad Iriawan proposed a revote, Ratu Tisha ended up replacing Zainudin as the second deputy chairman before Yunus backed out of the race.

Earlier, Erick’s main rival for the top job and former PSSI chairman, La Nyalla Mattalitti, warned that any reform would not be successful if any of the old executive committee members remained in the roster, describing them as “soccer mafia”.

While UNY’s Djoko acknowledged that it was hard to completely get rid of the old guard, it would be up to the new chairman to change PSSI for the better.

“As long as the chairman possesses a global mindset on how to develop world-class soccer for Indonesia, it could still be a success even if some of the old vestiges remain,” he said. (tjs)