The Southeast Asian Football Federation (AFF) has just rejected two representatives sent by PSSI to participate in the 2025-2026 Southeast Asian Club Championship. The incident caused Indonesia to lose its place in the tournament, despite being initially allocated two positions.
The reason comes from the fact that the two leading clubs in the Indonesian National Championship (Liga 1) are the defending champions and runners-up who refused to participate to focus on the Asian arena. PSSI then nominated the third and fourth-placed teams to replace them, but did not meet the AFF's mandatory regulation of only accepting the champion or runner-up.
Immediately after being eliminated from the tournament, PSSI President Erick Thohir gave a tough statement: "AFF does not agree with the teams we have chosen. It's good. We will follow our path. With a strong football scene, Indonesia does not necessarily have to be present in every regional playground".
According to Mr. Erick, the development of Indonesian football cannot be limited by a regional tournament. He emphasized that Liga 1 is the largest national championship in Southeast Asia today.
"We have 18 teams in the top flight and 20 teams in the second flight. Looking to Singapore, there are only 6 teams, Thailand has 16 teams, Vietnam has 14 teams. We are superior in scale and coverage," the Chairman of PSSI is confident.
Meanwhile, Vietnam will participate in the Southeast Asian Cup with two representatives, Nam Dinh (V.League champion) and Hanoi Police (National Cup champion). Thailand and Malaysia both have representatives who meet the AFF standards.
The Southeast Asian Cup has only been restarted since last season, aiming to elevate regional football through a competition system for the strongest clubs. However, for Indonesia, the withdrawal is considered "unnecessary to regret".
Mr. Erick Thohir affirmed: "We do not compare with our neighbors. Indonesia will take its own path, towards Asian stature".
