Erick Thohir Hails Indonesia's Rise to 142nd in FIFA Rankings
Editor
16 February 2024 08:14 WIB
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The Indonesian Football Association (PSSI) chairman Erick Thohir was delighted to see the national team climb four places to 142nd in the latest FIFA world rankings with 1072.66 points.
Based on the latest world rankings released by the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA), this is the highest rise for the Garuda team in the last five years. Previously, the team was ranked 146th in December 2023.
Indonesia's improvement can be attributed to the history made at the 2023 Qatar Asian Cup, where the team qualified for the round of 16.
“Praise be to God, the 142nd position in the FIFA rankings is not only the highest in the last five years but also this year,” Erick said in a written statement on Feb. 15.
Erick expected Indonesia to continue to climb to 100th in the world. “Although the goal remains to achieve 100th place in the world, this process proves that the programs we are enforcing at PSSI, especially in preparing a competitive and quality national team, are already on track,” said Erick who also serves as a State-Owned Enterprises (SOE) Minister.
The efforts will be on display in the second round of 2026 World Cup qualifying in the Asian Zone next month. Placed in Group F with Japan, Iraq, and Vietnam, the Garuda squad will take on the Golden Stars twice, home and away, on March 21 and March 26.
Clinching victory in these two matches will further boost Indonesia's FIFA ranking and chances of qualifying for the third round and moving closer to the 2026 World Cup in the United States, Canada, and Mexico.
ANTARA
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