THE EUPHORIA OF WELCOMING U-17 WORLD CUP IN SURABAYA, 31 TEAMS COMPETE IN INTER-DISTRICT FOOTBALL TOURNAMENT
2023-10-23
A total of 31 football teams began competing in the Inter-District Football Tournament on Monday, October 23rd. They were declared qualified after successfully passing the sub-district competition yesterday. This inter-district football tournament will take place from October 23rd to October 30th at the Jambangan Football Field and Mulyorejo Football Field in Surabaya.
The tournament, organized by the Surabaya City Government, is aimed at enhancing the excitement surrounding the upcoming U-17 World Cup grand event. This is a special event hosted by the government to welcome the U-17 World Cup, specifically by involving local students.
Wiwiek Widayati, the Head of the City Culture, Youth and Sports and Tourism Service of Surabaya, explained that the participants who passed the sub-district or inter-village football tournament will represent their respective districts.
“We hope that this friendly match can resonate with the spirit and inspire students. The inter- village competition started at the sub-district level yesterday, and now we are at the district level. We hope that new talented players can emerge from this event,” said Wiwiek.
Regarding the rules for players, Wiwiek explained that there weren't many differences from the latest inter-district football tournament. The maximum number of players allowed is 22, including 18 players and 2 coaches, with each match lasting 25 minutes per half.
“It is mandatory for players to obtain a recommendation from the district office, based on their official family card and a photocopy of their diploma. These documents must be submitted by the district officials at the match time, and players are forbidden from using a letter of current domicile. Additionally, both players and officials are required to arrive at least 30 minutes before the match,” she explained.
Wiwiek also added that the government hopes to discover new talent through this inter-district football tournament, as Surabaya is one of the venues for the U-17 World Cup in Indonesia.
“Talent scouting is also conducted to identify potential talent for development. We are optimistic about finding new football talents from the districts,” she concluded (*).