Jakarta (ANTARA) - The second match between Indonesia's and Bahrain's national football teams at the FIFA World Cup 2026 qualifiers will take place at Gelora Bung Karno Stadium, Jakarta, Indonesian Football Association (PSSI) Chairman Erick Thohir stated.
Thohir met with the Secretary-General of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC), Windsor Paul John, in Doha, Qatar, some time ago.
"Yes, the AFC secretary-general has recently assured me that the match against Bahrain will be held in Indonesia as initially planned," Thohir noted in a written statement received in Jakarta on Saturday.
This statement is associated with the appeal made by the Bahrain Football Association (BFA) to the International Football Federation (FIFA) to relocate the match, scheduled for March 25 next year, to a neutral venue due to security concerns.
The concerns stem from the massive online protests voiced by Indonesian supporters to the BFA and AFC following the Garuda Squad's 2-2 draw against Bahrain in the controversial third match of the Asian zone qualifiers held in Riffa, Bahrain, on October 10.
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Team Indonesia was leading 2-1 when Omani referee Ahmed Al-Kaf added six minutes of stoppage time, which was extended to the 99th minute for unknown reasons. Just seconds before the final whistle, Bahrain scored an equalizing goal, sparking outrage among Indonesian fans.
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Despite BFA's concerns about the safety of its players, Indonesia has proven to be a reliable host during its matches against Japan and Saudi Arabia in the subsequent fixtures of the World Cup qualifiers in November.
While Indonesia suffered a 0-4 defeat against Japan and beat Saudi Arabia 2-0, neither the players nor fans of the two visiting teams faced inconvenient acts or treatment from home supporters.
