Pertiwi Cup Completes Youth Girls' Football Tournament

TANGERANG, KOMPAS — The success of Putri Tangsel City in winning the Hydroplus Pertiwi Cup for U-14 and U-16 in 2025 for the Banten region marks the beginning of the presence of youth-level women's football tournaments in the country. Thus, women's football tournaments at this level are now complete. The consistency of the tournament and the presence of similar events are also eagerly anticipated.

Putri Tangsel City secured championship titles in two age groups after winning the final matches on Sunday (20/4/2025). In the match held at the Mini Stadium Cisauk, Tangerang Regency, Banten, Putri Tangsel City U-14 triumphed with a score of 3-2 against Putri Cipta Cendikia. Meanwhile, the U-12 team defeated Raga Negeri through a penalty shootout, 2-1.

Tangsel City U-16 female player, Rebecca Margaretha Niab (15), expressed her happiness after successfully leading the team to victory. This is Rebecca's debut in the age group tournament, making the achievement feel special for her.

Even more special is that Rebecca also received a personal award as the top scorer in the U-16 category. "I am happy because I could compete and score goals. This is my second tournament; previously, when I was 15 years old, I participated in the ASBWI Cup. I hope to join more tournaments after this so that I can be more motivated in my training," said Rebecca.

Similar hopes were expressed by Khansa Nisa Arrosid (14), a player from Putri Cipta Cendikia. Before the Piala Pertiwi, Khansa had only participated once in a women's football tournament, namely the MilkLife Soccer Challenge All Star 2025. The player, who won the best player award at the Piala Pertiwi U-14, usually competes alongside male players in men's football tournaments.

According to Khansa, playing and competing with male players is indeed more challenging. However, Khansa also hopes there will be many girls' football tournaments for her age group so that she can compete with other female footballers. "If there are many tournaments like this, I can gain a lot of match experience and meet many other players like me. I hope there will continue to be tournaments, so that I can participate in the U-16 category," said Khansa.

The Pertiwi Cup for U-14 and U-16 in the Banten region, which includes participants Khansa and Rebecca, marks the beginning of a series of tournaments that will be held in other regions. In addition to Banten, there are West Java (Bandung and Cirebon), Central Java (Semarang, Solo, and Kudus), and East Java (Surabaya and Malang). There are also regions in Kalimantan, Nusa Tenggara and Bali, Sulawesi, North Sumatra, South Sumatra, and Papua.

The presence of the U-14 and U-16 Piala Pertiwi fills the gap that previously existed in the tournament and competition levels of women's football. This gap arose because the development of women's football at the youth level has not been fully consistent and has still focused on the age group of 17 years and seniors.

In addition to the U-17 and senior Pertiwi Cup organized by PSSI, there is also a U-17 women's league. However, so far only the Bandung City Association of PSSI has held it through the Bandung Women League U-17.

On the other hand, at the age level of 10 to 12 years, coaching has been actively promoted in the last three years. The Indonesian Women's Football Association (ASBWI), for instance, held the ASBWI Cup U-15 National 2023 for one week. ASBWI has also organized several women's football festivals.

Since 2023, the Djarum Foundation has also initiated a girls' football tournament for the under-10 (U-10) and under-12 (U-12) age groups titled "MilkLife Soccer Challenge." This series of tournaments has entered its third year, reaching eight cities on the island of Java.

This year, PSSI has finally partnered with Djarum Foundation to fill the gap in tournaments and competitions at the youth level through the Piala Pertiwi U-14 and U-16. Thus, the tournament structure at the youth level becomes complete, providing a platform for players who previously participated in the 10-year-old and 12-year-old age groups as they grow older.

Vivin Cahyani, a member of the Executive Committee of PSSI responsible for the women's national team, once stated that the presence of youth tournaments such as the U-14 and U-16 Piala Pertiwi assists the Provincial Associations of PSSI in their development efforts in their respective regions.

With private sector involvement, Vivin stated, there is certainty that the tournament will continue as they have financial support. In the future, Vivin hopes that the Provincial Association can also learn from the implementation of the tournament in terms of tournament management. Additionally, Vivin hopes that other private entities will organize similar tournaments.

The same hope was expressed by the Program Director of Hydroplus Piala Pertiwi U-14 and U-16, Teddy Tjahjono. The more parties that support women's football by organizing youth-level tournaments, Teddy stated, the greater the pool of talent among Indonesian players will be.

Teddy also expressed a commitment to consistently hold the U-14 and U-16 Piala Pertiwi. This commitment, according to Teddy, has been realized through a cooperation agreement between PSSI and the Djarum Foundation for the next three years. According to Teddy, his side recognizes that the certainty of the tournament being held regularly is crucial in the development of football, including women's football.

"If a tournament is held consistently, players will automatically prepare themselves to be ready to perform. They know when to train and they have goals in their training, and the training programs are adjusted to those goals. That is the importance of consistency and certainty in scheduling," said Teddy.

"This is a good start; hopefully, in the next 3-5 years, we can reap the benefits of this consistently held tournament," Teddy continued.

In addition to providing a platform for young female footballers, the presence of the U-14 and U-16 Piala Pertiwi also facilitates the formation of the Indonesian women's football team, which will be prepared to participate in the 2025 U-16 AFF Women's Cup and the 2026 U-17 Women's Asian Cup qualifiers. To this end, each match is monitored by a talent scouting team appointed by PSSI.

One of the talent scouting team members, Yopi Riwoe, stated that there are many potential talents he discovered at the Piala Pertiwi regional tournament in Banten. Yopi and the team selected 18 of the best players for each age group.

These names will be recommended to the national women's team coach, Satoru Mochizuki. A total of 25 players have been selected to represent Banten in the national-level tournament, the Piala Pertiwi All Star, which will be held in Kudus, Central Java.

"Potential players are always present. However, it is also necessary to consider what will happen to them afterward. This means that relying solely on national team training camps or tournaments that occur only once a year is insufficient. There is a need for other tournaments or even ongoing competitions," said Yopi, who once served as an assistant coach for the women's national team.

The presence of tournaments for ages 10 to 16 should also serve as an encouragement to establish consistency in tournaments at higher levels. The senior Piala Pertiwi, for instance, must be held regularly again so that all levels of women's football tournaments can take place.

The Pertiwi Cup has experienced fluctuations in its implementation. The national round of the Pertiwi Cup is set to be held again in 2024 after being canceled the previous year. In fact, in 2023, several regions had already organized the regional level of the Pertiwi Cup. However, due to the national round not taking place, the progress of the winners from each region was halted at the regional level.

The Piala Pertiwi currently remains the only outlet for senior female football players to compete. This is because the women's football league has been dormant since it was first and last held in 2019.