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Indonesia moves to naturalize Dutch players to boost women’s soccer
Four Dutch female soccer players of Indonesian descent will be naturalized after House approval to boost Indonesia’s national team ahead of key tournaments, including the 2025 SEA Games.
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Erick Thohir (right), chief of the Soccer Association of Indonesia (PSSI), sits next to Deputy Youth and Sports Minister Taufiq Hidayat in this undated photo file. (PSSI/-)
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our Dutch women soccer players of Indonesian descent are set to be naturalized following approval from the House of Representatives, in a bid to strengthen Indonesia's national team and make it more competitive ahead of upcoming matches, including the 2025 Southeast Asian (SEA) Games in Thailand.
During a plenary session last week, lawmakers approved a proposal from the Youth and Sports Ministry to naturalize four players, namely Felicia Victoria de Zeeuw, Emily Julia Frederica Nahon, Iris Joska de Rouw and Isa Guusje Wraps, all of whom have Indonesian ancestry through one of their grandparents.
"The approval will be followed up per the applicable mechanism," Deputy House Speaker Adies Kadir said during last week's plenary session at the House complex in Jakarta, as quoted by Antara.
Erick Thohir, chief of the Soccer Association of Indonesia (PSSI), praised the House for its swift and wise decision to approve the naturalization process.
De Zeeuw, born in Delft on Jan. 19, 2006, inherits her Indonesian roots from her maternal grandmother, Felixia Adelle Kuhuwael, who was born in Jakarta on Aug. 22, 1940.
She currently plays for ADO Den Haag as an attacking midfielder and can also operate as a central or defensive midfielder. Felicia began her soccer career at the age of 10 at the DSVP Pijnacker club.
Nahon, another ADO Den Haag player set for naturalization, was born in Oegstgeest on May 17, 2007. She has Indonesian heritage through her paternal grandmother, Julie Andrette Margot Rancuret, who was born in Bogor, West Java, on April 29, 1949.
