Indonesia Makes Surprise Bid Move

Indonesia have made a surprise move by officially registering an intention to bid to the host either the 2018 or 2022 World Cup, buoying the number of Asian countries in the frame.

A proposal from the Indonesian FA is one of six already received by FIFA, joining England, Japan, Qatar, Russia and a joint application from Spain and Portugal.

Several other countries, including Australia, China, Mexico, plus the Netherlands and Belgium jointly, have told local media they will join the race before the deadline passes.

A lack of footballing pedigree — the national team is currently placed 144th in FIFA’s world rankings — and creaking infrastructure mean Indonesia will likely be labelled an outsider for hosting the World Cup.

However with another Asian alternative on the table it is clear that the continent is fast becoming a major option for FIFA, particularly given its comparatively decent economic environment.

The England bid had previously been labelled with the favourites tag with FIFA reportedly keen to return to Europe in 2018 following South Africa in 2010 and Rio de Janiero in 2014.

Nugraha Besoes, secretary general of the Indonesian FA (PSSI), said the lengthy run-up towards the 2022 World Cup would help the country’s chances of tabling a serious bid.

‘We can see that this is about 13 years ahead, so why don’t we be brave and try to host it?’ he said.

FIFA decided in 2007 to adapt its continental rotation policy, announcing that future World Cups could not be staged in any continent that had hosted one of the two previous World Cups.

FIFA is due to announce the hosts of both the 2018 and 2022 tournaments in December 2010.