The Under-23 Indonesian Soccer team in 2011
Remember when a bunch of people got riled up because they thought they couldn’t watch a bunch of soccer matches at the Gelora Bung Karno (GBK) stadium because the dates were too close to the One Direction concert? Well, it turns out there was no reason to get upset after all.
The Indonesian Football Association (PSSI) confirmed that the U-23 Asia Cup Qualifiers involving Indonesia, South Korea, Timor Leste, and Brunei Darussalam will be played at the GBK stadium on March 27-31.
“The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) chose the Jakarta venue, in this case the GBK, considering the short time frame [to switch venues]. Furthermore, the AFC don’t have the time to verify other venues the PSSI proposed like the ones in Palembang, Solo, and Bali,” said PSSI Secretarty General Joko Driyono, as quoted by Tempo today.
Given that the One Direction concert takes place on March 25, the GBK management will be in a race against time to transform the GBK from a concert venue back into a soccer stadium in just two days.
