2026 Futsal Asian Cup: Indonesia's Test for the 2028 Futsal World Cup

Indonesia is currently hosting the 2026 Futsal Asian Cup, which takes place from January 27 to February 7, 2026. This championship features 16 countries divided into four groups. The host nation, Indonesia, is placed in Group A alongside Iraq, Kyrgyzstan, and South Korea. As of January 31, 2026, the Indonesian national futsal team has secured a spot in the quarter-finals and successfully finished in first place in Group A after defeating South Korea and Iraq.

The organization of this biennial tournament at the Asian level serves as a test of Indonesia's readiness as it strives to host the 2028 Futsal World Cup. This step is certainly a breath of fresh air for Indonesia. For the first time, Indonesia is beginning to step onto the international stage in the realm of professional futsal development. If successful, this will undoubtedly be a significant achievement in the history of futsal in Indonesia and Southeast Asia.

Looking back at the history of the Futsal World Cup, Thailand is the only country in Southeast Asia that has ever been entrusted as the host in 2012.

In addition to Thailand, there has not been a single country in Southeast Asia that has achieved a similar accomplishment. Indonesia's decision to participate in the competition as the host of the 2028 Futsal World Cup will certainly elevate the image of futsal in Southeast Asia in the eyes of the world.

On one hand, Indonesia's struggle is indeed quite challenging. This is because, in 2024, the World Cup will be held in an Asian country, namely Uzbekistan. In the history of the futsal World Cup, the event has never been held consecutively on the same continent. This is done to equalize opportunities for countries on other continents to participate in the Futsal World Cup, which is held every four years.

On the other hand, Indonesia is not without opportunities. In terms of facilitation, for instance, Indonesia has the Indonesia Arena in Central Jakarta and the Jakarta International Velodrome in East Jakarta, which can be utilized as competition venues.

Meanwhile, in terms of achievement records, Indonesia ranks among the top 25 in the world and the top 10 in Asia. This means that Indonesia is worthy of being compared with major countries in futsal such as Uzbekistan, Japan, Poland, and Italy.

This capital can certainly be utilized by Indonesia to aim for the 2028 World Cup. Moreover, Indonesia is currently in the spotlight of futsal enthusiasts in Asia as it will host the 2026 Futsal Asian Cup in Jakarta.

The organization of the Asian Cup is not a new event in the history of futsal for Indonesia. In 2002, Indonesia also hosted the Futsal Asian Cup. At that time, Indonesia successfully earned the trust to host the fourth edition of the Futsal Asian Cup. This marked Indonesia's first participation in the Asian futsal arena.

Unfortunately, Indonesia's performance in the Asian futsal sports festival at that time was not particularly impressive. After successfully defeating China with a score of 6-0, Indonesia had to acknowledge Japan's superiority with a score of 5-1 and Kuwait with a score of 3-2.

The draw against Kyrgyzstan was not enough to elevate Indonesia's position in the standings. Indonesia had to settle for fourth place in the standings out of a total of five teams in Group C at that time.

As a team, Indonesia was indeed not fully prepared to compete on the Asian stage at that time. This was because Indonesia was still utilizing several professional football players, one of whom was Francis Wewengkang. The player, who had previously strengthened Persjiatim Solo, Persikota Tangerang, and Persija Jakarta, had also experienced a career as a national futsal team player during the 2002 Asian Cup.

Despite being in an uneven condition, Indonesia was relatively successful in hosting the 2002 Futsal Asian Cup at that time. Istora Senayan witnessed Indonesia's hospitality in organizing the Asian-level sports competition. Indonesia also witnessed Iran's glory as they successfully claimed the championship title for the fourth consecutive time.

Now, a similar event is being held again in Jakarta. The conditions are certainly very different compared to the year 2002. Currently, futsal has its own enthusiasts. In fact, a professional league has been established, producing a number of talented players. This means that the organization of the 2026 Futsal Asian Cup will truly capture the attention of the public, even the international community.

This event certainly serves as a proving ground for Indonesia. While in 2002 Indonesia merely hosted the Asian Cup, the organization this year is quite different.

The 2026 Futsal Asian Cup is a proving ground that, in terms of facilities and community support, Indonesia is worthy of hosting the 2028 Futsal World Cup. The readiness of primary physical infrastructure, supporting infrastructure, and the attitude of supporters for the Indonesian national futsal team are crucial in determining the success of this Asian-level futsal competition.

In addition to the aspect of organization, Indonesia also needs to prove its achievements on the stage of the 2026 Futsal Asian Cup. The Indonesian futsal national team is a competitive team at the Asian and global levels. According to FIFA records as of December 12, 2025, Indonesia is ranked 24th in the world of futsal. Indonesia's ranking is higher than that of several top football countries such as the Netherlands (29), Uruguay (30), and Belgium (34).

In the Asian arena, Indonesia ranks sixth best, below Iran (5), Thailand (11), Japan (13), Vietnam (20), and Uzbekistan (22). This FIFA ranking illustrates that Indonesia is capable of competing with other top futsal teams in the world.

This world ranking was not achieved in a short time. Indonesia's struggle to build a futsal development framework took nearly two decades. Professional training and management have been continuously carried out, especially in the last four years. Indonesia has successfully recorded several achievements, such as winning the AFF Futsal Cup 2024 at the Southeast Asian level.

Indonesia also competed in the 2025 4 Nations World Series tournament, which was attended by four countries: Argentina, Japan, Saudi Arabia, and Indonesia. The tournament was held at the Jakarta International Velodrome in February 2025. The Indonesian national futsal team defeated Japan, the Asian futsal giant, 1-0. Indonesia also defeated the Saudi Arabian team 3-0. Despite losing to Argentina, Indonesia finished runner-up in the 2025 4 Nations World Series tournament.

The Indonesian futsal team also achieved success at the CFA International Men’s Futsal Tournament 2025. This international futsal tournament was organized by the China Invitational Tournament (CFA) in September 2025.

The tournament was participated in by eight countries, namely China, South Korea, Denmark, the United Arab Emirates, New Zealand, Myanmar, Cambodia, and Indonesia. The Indonesian team successfully became the champion of the CFA International Men’s Futsal Tournament 2025.

The Indonesian national futsal team successfully secured a gold medal at the 2025 SEA Games. In the decisive match, Indonesia defeated the host Thailand with a score of 6-1.

Currently, at the 2026 Futsal Asian Cup, the Indonesian team has secured qualification from the group stage and advanced to the quarter-finals.

This track record demonstrates that the Indonesian futsal team is rapidly developing. This momentum certainly needs to be utilized to achieve the goals dreamed of by futsal enthusiasts, namely to compete in the 2028 Futsal World Cup. (KOMPAS RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT)