Why was the failure at the 33rd SEA Games such a huge shock for Indonesian football?

From World Cup qualifiers to Southeast Asian and Asian youth tournaments, Indonesian football ended 2025 in embarrassment after its U.23 team, its last remaining hope, ultimately proved to be a huge disappointment.

Indonesian national teams have suddenly lost almost all of their head coaches, their future uncertain.

The failure of the Indonesian U23 team, ending their chances of defending their gold medal in men's football at the 33rd SEA Games, their worst performance since 2009 (when they failed to reach the semi-finals), almost certainly means that veteran coach Indra Sjafri will soon part ways, ending both his career and the achievement of winning a gold medal for Indonesian football at the regional sports event for the first time in 32 years (2023 in Cambodia).

Indonesia's U23 team lost to Vietnam's U23 team in the Southeast Asian U23 Championship final and were eliminated from the 2026 Asian Championship. They continued to disappoint greatly at the 33rd SEA Games.

Photo: Dong Nguyen Khang

"With a complete overhaul of the U.23 team, Indonesian football is in a very strange situation: almost every team, from the highest level down to the current U.17 team, has a vacant head coach position."

"The only exception is the U.20 team, with coach Nova Arianto recently promoted from the U.17 team. This will force the Indonesian Football Federation (PSSI) to intensify negotiations to find coaches to fill the vacant positions. But above all, what direction will PSSI choose for the future of Indonesian football after this recent shock?", CNN Indonesia journalist Muhammad Ikhwanuddin expressed.

Another worrying aspect for Indonesian football is that, after a period of intense investment, primarily focused on naturalizing players of Dutch descent, this project is now likely to be a complete failure.

The Indonesian national team failed to qualify for the 2026 World Cup due to a "Dutchification" of over 90% of its players, from the coaching staff to the players. The U23 team also had a significant number of naturalized players, but they were eliminated in the U23 Asian Championship qualifiers, lost hope of defending their SEA Games gold medal, and also failed to win the U23 Southeast Asian Championship despite being held on home soil.

The U.20 team was also eliminated in the group stage of the U.20 Asian Championship, with only the U.17 team having the consolation of qualifying for the U.17 World Cup in Qatar, but they were also eliminated early in the group stage.

"Indonesian football will certainly have to undergo a complete overhaul after the shock at the 33rd SEA Games. All hopes now rest on the U.20 team led by coach Nova Arianto, thereby rebuilding from the youth teams for at least the next two years."

The Indonesian national team's dream of qualifying for the 2026 World Cup has ended, despite almost the entire team being "Dutchified."

Photo: Reuters

In particular, the U.23 team needs a new coach as soon as possible to plan for the U.23 Asian Championship qualifiers starting in 2027, aiming for a place in the 2028 finals and a chance to participate in the 2028 Olympics. They will also return to the 34th SEA Games in Malaysia in 2027 to regain their prestige.

The U.20 team also needs to reach international standards, specifically aiming for the U.20 World Cup in 2027. Meanwhile, the Indonesian national team's participation in the 2027 Asian Cup is also a step towards preparing for the next World Cups in 2030 and 2034, with the goal of at least reaching the third qualifying round to have a chance to compete for a ticket to the finals," CNN Indonesia emphasized.

However, to date, despite PSSI and its chairman Erick Thohir having set out an ambitious project, its implementation remains completely unclear. Erick Thohir also holds the position of Minister of Youth and Sports of Indonesia.

This also raises many questions for Indonesian football, as the naturalization strategy has proven largely ineffective. From the senior national team to the U23 team, there are many naturalized stars from the Netherlands, but they have failed to help the national teams progress as expected.

Meanwhile, many compare this approach to Vietnamese football today, which still focuses strategically on training young players in academies. Through this, they have consistently maintained success at least at the youth football level in the region and continent for many years.

Vietnamese football is still making steady progress by building its internal strength from the youth level, combined with the naturalization of qualified players of Vietnamese and foreign origin, to supplement the national team.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/vi-sao-that-bai-o-sea-games-33-tro-thanh-cu-soc-lon-cua-bong-da-indonesia-185251213101730361.htm