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Ghotbi on Asian Cup and South Korean players

Afshin Ghotbi recently left his position as South Korean assistant coach to take over Iranian club Persepolis. Born in Iran, the 43 year-old left his homeland for America in 1977 and went to the 1998 World Cup with the United States and the 2002 and 2006 World Cups with South Korea. He spoke to John Duerden of goal.com (extracts):

Practical problems of the 2007 Asian Cup:

First of all, you have four different countries, four different kinds of politics and different logistics. There are only 16 teams, it makes no sense to have four teams in each country and then have them travel around in the knockout stage. I can give you some examples – when we arrived at the training ground in Jakarta, the training pitch was worse than any amateur pitch. We went to the stadium before any game had been played and it looked like there had been a full season of games played on it. It was very bumpy with different kinds if grass growing on it, maybe five different kinds. They’ve cut it where one stripe as one height and the next stripe is a different height so television cameras could see different colours and that makes absolutely sense for the players because the ball is changing speeds as it travels through the grass at different levels.

Then we were supposed to have a closed training session but there were a 1,000 people watching. Having four teams in the same hotel makes no sense. Then we traveled to Malaysia and then realized that some of the coaches and staff didn’t have enough rooms. So then they had to move us to a different hotel and a two-hour day turned into a 14 hour day for the coaches and a 12-hour day for the players. With only a three-day break between games, this doesn’t help the players.

Having referees referee us for two or three games creates awkward situations. In the Iran and Korea game, having a referee from UAE, this makes no sense as some Iranian players play there and can speak Arabic, so they can influence. We’re playing Iraq with a Kuwaiti referee. These are recipes for questions.

The AFC has to do a better job of managing these tournaments. The sponsorship was fantastic and they did a great job of finding sponsors but what happened to selling tickets? For a top player playing in an empty stadium, it doesn’t motivate them so much. I think pitch conditions, logistics, empty stadiums and the decisions taken with referees needs to improve. If Asia is to be the future of football then we need to be a lot more responsible. The game against Indonesia was fantastic and we need more of those kinds of games but the semi-final in Malaysia, most of the stadium was empty. If you have the tournament in one country, it’s easier to build energy, if we put the tournament in cities attractive for tourists. Our 3/4 place play-off against Japan in Palembang and with all respect to Palembang it was in the middle of nowhere. The players had to fly from Malaysia to Jakarta and then take another flight to Palembang and then take a bus ride through farmland – it makes no sense.

On the South Korean national team:

I feel we have planted a fantastic foundation for the future of Korean football and 2010. The fruit of what we have done will be seen in 2010. We have introduced players that were unknowns – players like Kim Chi-woo, Kim Jin-kyu, Oh beom-seok and Kang Min-soo were fantastic. Son Dae-ho was introduced and he is not very young but based on his experience, you can see a bright future in international football for him in the next 5-6 years.

The Korean team was a young team and achieved much more than people gave them credit for. They played Japan, Saudi Arabia, Iran and Iraq – the top four teams. We didn’t lose a game. With a little bit more luck, more sharpness and innovation in attack, it was a tournament that we could have won. But for the fans and the media, it is difficult to get excited about a team that scores only three goals in six games … We all wanted to score more goals but the reality is who is scoring goals in the K-League? The reality is which Korean player is consistently scoring goals at the top level? As long as in the K-League the best strikers are foreigners, as long as Korean strikers abroad are sitting on the bench, it’s very difficult to produce top goalscorers for the national team when you are getting two, three day and two-week preparations before major tournaments and try to compete with the best teams in the world and Asia.

Take Shin Young-rok as an example. He’s been a very promising striker since he was 16 and I met him at Suwon. It is very difficult for him to get in the first team. If Suwon really have the player’s greatest interest at heart and the development of Korean football at heeart, they can take some decisions to help him –either give him as many opportunities as possible in the first team or loan or sell him to a different club where he can start. I can understand this, they want to make the deepest squad and win things and they think ‘why should we give a good player away to another team?’

We have to use more innovation and ingenuity in attack. It starts at the youth level and the selection of players that are youthful and creative. It starts with a training environment where they are given chances to take decisions. I have worked in the K-League and they are trained to be mechanical, they are trained not to take risks, not to make decisions, follow orders and that is a reflection of the society. Those are things that Hiddink started talking about in 2001, trying to break down the heirachy in football and the relationship between older players and younger players.

EPL changes Asian football television programming

The sports media landscape in Asia changed dramatically on the weekend of 11-12 August as the English Premier League dropped from the schedules of many of its last remaining major free-to-air terrestrial television broadcasters. Promoters, who'd paid the EPL most of the record £625 million it received from foreign rights for 2007-2010, began to recoup their investment. In some markets, even Pay-TV stations were churned in the search for higher returns. In others, licensees are using the EPL as Rupert Murdoch's proverbial "battering ram" to lead fans to support new Pay TV operations.

In China, the change to Pay-TV had been well announced. "It's time to say goodbye to those TV channels that provided Premier League games free of charge," said WinTV Chief Executive Song Zheng in February after successfully bidding a reported US$50 million for PRC market. Song, whose station had just 40,000 subscribers, said he was confident of winning over viewers. "I know that most Chinese people have been getting used to viewing soccer matches on free channels. It will be difficult to change this habit in the beginning, but I believe that more and more people will choose pay-TV in the future." And yet, at kick-off for the new EPL season, subsidiary contracts with regional cable TV operators in major regions, including the largest city Shanghai, had yet to be concluded. A boon to a few companies offering live games via the internet, it was a scenario feared by some of England's biggest clubs who were reportedly "furious" that "limited Pay-TV audience may restrict the dynamic growth of English football in the world's most populous country."

In Indonesia, the change came as a shock. The week prior to the start of the EPL season, it was announced that ESPN-STAR Sports' arrangement with national FTA broadcaster Trans7 would not be continued. Trans7 said it "wouldn't be able to cover the cost of buying the rights even if we sold all the advertising spots, combined with other income from sponsors." But the hundreds of thousands of subscribers used to watching English football on the two ESS channels on established Pay-TV services Kabelvision and Indovision found they too would miss out. Paralleling the exclusive deal ESS made with Astro Supersport for the Malaysian market in 2001, Astro's brand new Indonesian subsidiary was suddenly announced as the new EPL sub-licensee for Asia's third largest nation for an undisclosed amount. "Our basic idea by bringing EPL into the country is to give Indonesian people access to watch the league," vice president for corporate affairs at PT Direct Vision's Astro Indonesia, Halim Mahfudz, confusingly told The Jakarta Post.

Last-minute brinkmanship also occurred in Japan where Pay-TV J Sports signed an exclusive three-year contract with Sportfive - after the first 10 games of the new Premiership season had been concluded. The Japan Times anticipated that fans would be forced to test the quality of internet transmissions or to watch illegal displays at pubs and bars and discovered venues would be tapping into a South African channel for their customers. This did not appear to concern the rights-holders. "The deal we agreed with J Sports represents a continuation of our excellent partnership in the past", said Sportfive executive vice president Robert Müller von Vultejus. EPL CEO Richard Scudamore praised the process. “We are very satisfied with the result of Sportfive’s distribution of our rights [and] welcome J Sports to the circle of partners of the English Premier League,” he said.

The manoeuverings show the formidable market power of the English Premier League throughout Asia but also provide a window of opportunity to competitors. The free-to-air broadcasters and non-EPL Pay-TV networks are filling their programming with other European football, notably Spanish, Italian and German and, increasingly domestic and regional competitions. But the EPL's competitors have significant weaknesses. How much better for La Liga marketing in Asia if Real Madrid and Barcelona collaborated? How much better for SerieA if it had a clean image for punters? How much better for Bundesliga if it hand-fed media with in-depth data and statistics?

As for domestic beneficiaries, the recent Asian Forum on Sports Innovation (www.asianfosi.com) had two messages on competing for fan loyalties with English and European football.

Claire Kenny Tipton, the Asian Football Confederation's Director of Marketing and Media and Communications pointed out that 61% of all football revenues in Asia goes to the English Premier League and, in South East Asia in particularly, the English Premiership is the most supported football product. She argued, however, against the proposition that the overwhelming broadcasting of European football somehow got fans involved in local football. “One of the problems in these countries, Indonesia excepted, is that fans don't go to stadiums. A generation of latent fans has been created. They've never been to a live football game. They don't play football. They don't have a passion for the game. They watch it on TV. They get together with their mates next door or in a coffee shop. They say they support Man United or Liverpool or Real Madrid but they'll buy the shirt and that’s it. That's where it begins and where it ends, “ she said.

The Asian Cup was brought to South East Asia “at great expense” so the Asian Football Confederation could say: “Malaysia, you can one day be as good as Japan if you put Malaysian football first; if you create a platform for domestic football. Same in Thailand and in Vietnam,” she said. It was easiest to attract spectators in Indonesia and Vietnam and difficult “as expected” in Malaysia and Thailand. But what was astonishing is that while the opening games of the group stages in Kuala Lumpur and Bangkok were very poorly attended, the domestic TV ratings - with RTM in Malaysia and Channel 7 in Thailand, were huge. “The Thai matches on 7 were bigger than the World Cup ratings or the European Champions League ratings or the FA Cup final ratings,” she said.

This indicates “a culture of people who demonstrate their passion for the sport by watching it on TV,” she warned. “In South East Asia the numbers attending club matches has not increased, it has decreased. The number of children playing football has not increased. If anything in certain countries it has got worse. The commercial revenue has decreased and the television coverage has virtually disappeared.” So rather than inspiring local football, the foreign broadcasting “presses it down,” she said. .

Dez Corkhill, Director of internet content at ESPN-STAR Sport spoke of football in Asia as “fabulous” product with some as “good as anywhere in the world.” Even in Malaysia, he said, the highest rating live telecast in the past year had been an ASEAN Football Championship game between Malaysia and Singapore. “It out-rated anything from Manchester United Liverpool, Arsenal or Real Madrid … So there’s a product here. There really is.” However of the top nine highest rating games, the other eight were all English Premier League. “That's the reality facing sports organisations at the grassroots level. You've got to somehow work out a way to get into our market,” he said. “We deliver sports to the fan. Whatever sport will give us our best ratings. That’s because it makes us money and we are a business.” His advice to domestic competitions is to produce a professional product, with a clear message and with strict scheduling. “People are captivated by good audio, good video and good sport. Liga Indonesia, for instance, is great but needs to be packaged better and smarter,” he said.

Indonesian League Board welcomes AFC input

Representatives of the Indonesia League Committee (BLI) of the Football Association of Indonesia (PSSI) met Asian Football Confederation General Secretary Dato Paul Mony Samuel today at the Hilton Hotel, Petaling Jaya, Malaysia. The meeting discussed changes to the Indonesia professional league structure, particularly the new Super League that will commence in 2008. “We see that Indonesia did so many things lately and also their effort to build a professional league,” said Dato Paul, as quoted by the PSSI website. BLI Executive Director Andi Darusalam, Chairman Rugandi Soemadipraja, Competition Director Joko Driyono and Financial Director Kokoh Afiat "welcomed every input" from the AFC. “We think every suggestion from Dato is important to us – moreover BLI is trying to do lot of positive thing in holding a competition,” said Darussalam.

No EPL broadcast deal yet signed for Indonesia

Indonesian fans of the English Premier League will no longer be able to watch games on Free-to-Air television or even through exisiting Pay-TV accounts on the countries established but limited cable television and satellite delivered systems. Instead, the games will only be able to be viewed on channels carried by Pay-TV newcomer Astro from Malaysia. "We have a business deal with EPL's rights holder and we have no authority to resell the rights to local TV stations. Everything business-wise must be in line with the contract," Vice President for Corporate Affairs at PT Direct Vision's Astro Indonesia, Halim Mahfudz, told The Jakarta Post.

Astro on Tuesday was granted the right to broadcast Premiership matches in Indonesia. Through ESPN, Star Sports, Goal TV1 and Goal TV2 channels, it will broadcast all 370 matches. "We will run most of the matches live but we will have to delay some due to parallel fixtures. We will also repeat some interesting matches for those who miss them. Our basic idea by bringing EPL into the country is to give Indonesian people access to watch the league. That's why we are also thinking about how to give Indonesians more chances to watch EPL matches through various programs, such as nonton bareng," Mahfudz said, referring to special events organized by the rights holder where groups of football fans can watch matches on a giant screen.

Local TV stations will still be able to air matches from other European leagues. Trans7, for example, will begin airing Italian league matches starting later this month. Trans7, previously TV7, had held the rights to broadcast the EPL since 2003. "We didn't take it (the EPL rights) as the price was simply too costly for us," Trans7 communications manager Anita Wulandari told the Post. "We wouldn't be able to cover the cost of buying the rights even if we sold all the advertising spots, combined with other income from sponsors."

Indonesian FA slammed as 'corrupt or incompetent'

In his Op-Ed article for today's The Straits Times in Singapore, Nathaniel Myers observed that the Indonesian national team had failed to qualify for the AFC Asian Cup 2007 final played in the national stadium in Jakarta, even though it "had played admirably - energised by enormous home crowds [and] displayed talent well above its 127th-place international ranking, even defeating Bahrain in its opening match." It raised the "natural question" he wrote, "With a potential talent pool of 230 million citizens and a national passion for the sport, why is Indonesia unable to produce 11 players capable of competing on the international level?"

He then went on to slam the Football Association of Indonesia (PSSI) as an "organisation described charitably as disorganised, but more often as corrupt or incompetent. Critics frequently point to it as the reason for Indonesia's football struggles, accusing it of squandering Indonesia's sporting potential by failing to develop a national programme to cultivate the finest players from across the archipelago."

The Assistant Program Officer for Aceh Programs at the Asia Foundation in Jakarta then argued that "Indonesia's football problem is not, in short, one of limited resources - it's one of management and administration. Or, to put it in different terms, it's about the quality of governance - a problem with repercussions far beyond the soccer pitch. The way that mismanagement, incompetence and corruption have undermined the development of Indonesia's national football team offers an instructive reminder of how development - whether in sports or economics - is as contingent upon organisation as it is on resources."

Indonesian VP calls for sport to work with business

Indonesia's Vice President Jusuf Kalla has urged sports stakeholders to learn from Iraq's inspiring performance at the Asian Cup. "Iraq taught us a valuable lesson last night. They were able to win the Asian Cup despite the misery they suffer back home. It could only happen because of their love of the game and their fighting spirit," he said when opening a hastily organised National Sports Council (KONI) extraordinary national meeting in Jakarta to discuss internal statutes.

Kalla referred to Iraq's historic 1-0 win over Saudi Arabia in the Asian Cup final. "We must have such a fighting spirit within ourselves to improve our achievements ... We must be confident that we can make a difference by holding all the aces we have," he said wihout specifically pin-pointing the Football Association of Indonesia (PSSI)

Kalla also highlighted the importance of professionalism in reviving the country's ailing sports system. "We had relied too much on state funds to run sporting events in the past because most chiefs of sports organisations are government officials or generals. It must change now. We have to be more professional in developing sports to attract sponsors who will fund sporting events." He said big companies would sponsor sports events only if they were sure that their money would be managed professionally and they knew what they would get in return from the sponsorship deals. It's the time to run sports as a business."

Sports Sponsorship and CSR seminar in Jakarta

International seminar on Professional and Grassroots Sports and Development, Sponsorship and Corporate Social Responsibility in Asia

The first edition of the Asian Forum on Sports Innovation held in Indonesia was concluded the day after the historic victory of Iraq over Saudi Arabia in the final of the Asian Cup, also held in Jakarta. Forum speakers attending the game were warmly greeted by Asian Football Confederation President Mohamed Bin Hamman and VIP guest FIFA President Joseph S Blatter.

Presentation documents have been added to the Asian Forum on Sports Innovation website, http://www.asianfosi.com/, as well as media report links and notices of future events.

At the high-profile 30 July conference at The Sultan Hotel Jakarta, the Forum's two integrated streams - 'professional sports dynamics' and 'sports and development' - proved timely for local private sector funders of athletes, clubs and sports competitions as a new Corporations Law just passed by Indonesia's parliament included, for the first time, 'Social Corporate Responsibility' obligations for most incorporated businesses.

Fritz E Simandjuntak, Vice President of the Indonesian Marketing Association and Head of External Relations of the Rajawali Group, emphasised the opportunity presented by this unprecedented legislative initiative for all domestic stakeholders in sports administration, athlete management and revenue raising.

Geneva-based David Winiger, Special Assistant to Dr Adolf Ogi, the Special Advisor on Sport and Development and Peace to the United Nations Secretary-General, presented a broad overview of the Special Adviser's mandate for the world of sport, sports industries and governments and UN organisations, to identify activities and programs which benefit from a partnership with sports organisations.

Johann Olav Koss, multiple gold medal Olympian and CEO of Right To Play, the international NGO leading the use of sports and play for the development of children youth, detailed Right To Play's projects in over 20 countries in the Middle East, Africa and Asia using specially designed sport and play programs to teach life skills, peace building and health education to children affected by war, poverty and disease.

Clare Kenny Tipton, fresh from managing Asia’s biggest and most complex sports tournament, the AFC Asian Cup 2007 which involved 16 teams playing 33 matches in eight stadiums in four countries, outlined the scope for development, opportunities, challenges, realities and possible rewards for sports in Asia. The Asian Football Confederation's Deputy General Secretary, Director of Marketing and Director of Media and Communications, she backed the AFC's claim that the future of football is Asia - from grassroots through to the professional levels.

Dez Corkhill, Television Producer, News Editor and Director of Content for espnstar.com, also ESPN Star Sport’s sometimes controversial The Top Corner presenter and commentator on Asian domestic football, pin-pointed the marketing bias of sports broadcasters while identifying opportunities for Asian competitions to increase their profile. "The best of the action is right on your doorstep" he said.

Two excellent local case studies on the progressive social role of sports were presented to an international audience for the first time: Said Fauzan Baabud, UNDP Livelihoods Program Officer in Indonesia’s tsunami-disaster struck province of Aceh described sports and youth empowerment programs as crucial elements in post-disaster rehabilitation work and Anton Inbenai, Dept of Sport and Youth, Jayapura City and Henk Rumbewas, Papua province international representative for the Indonesian National Sports Committee, outlined the Persipura Football Club’s role in HIV/AIDS and safe-sex awareness campaigns.

Saudi Arabia buying support at Asian Cup final

Saudi Arabia has reportedly booked 15,000 tickets for its supporters to attend its Asian Cup final against Iraq in Jakarta on Sunday night. On Friday the Indonesian organising committee of the event confirmed that the Saudi team's management had booked 15,000 tickets costing Rp 50,000 each. Besides this, 10,000 more tickets priced at Rp 100,000 each were also reported to have been booked by World Sport Group, an intimate marketing associate of the Asian Football Confederation.

Indonesian newspapers earlier reported that only about 2,000 tickets had been sold for the match, which will be held at the 88,000 capacity Gelora Bung Karno Stadium and Antara news agency surmised the ticket purchases were made to ensure a fitting finale for Asia's premier football tournament.

The Indonesian organising committee had hoped the final would have been between Japan and South Korea as both countries have a sizeable number of their citizens in Jakarta and had subsequently and unsuccessfully tried to convince the AFC to transfer the 3/4 final between the two nations from provincial Palembang to Jakarta as a curtain-raiser for the main event.

Indonesians hope for Japan v South Korea Cup Final

Asian Cup host Indonesia wants to see South Korea and Japan contest the final in Jakarta, believing the match-up will attract the most supporters to its 88,000 capacity Gelora Bung Karno stadium. Football Association of Indonesia (PSSI) General Secretary Nugraha Besoes said he expected Korean and Japanese factory owners in Indonesia would buy tickets for their workers if the sides win their semi-final matches on Wednesday and progress to Sunday's final. "Among the Asian nations, Japan and Korea are the most crazy about football. I am sure they would bring out the masses," he said as reported by AP.

Indonesian striker outed for breaking Cup curfew

Indonesia striker Zaenal Arif has apologised for breaking an Asian Cup curfew and admitted he was out much later than first charged. Zaenal was dropped from the Indonesia squad days before their crunch Group D clash with South Korea after telling coach Ivan Kolev he had broken a 10 pm curfew by an hour. Indonesia lost the game 1-0 and were dumped out of the tournament. "I lied when I said I was in my room by 11 pm," he told a disciplinary hearing reported by Reuters. "The truth was I came back to the hotel at 2:30 am." Zaenal had also handed over a cash bonus he received from the Football Association of Indonesia (PSSI).

South Korea tight 1-0 win over attacking Indonesia

South Korea scraped into the Asian Cup quarter-finals with a nervous 1-0 win over gallant Indonesia in their final Group D game played before 88,000 emotional Indonesian fans at their National Stadium in Jakarta. Kim Jung-woo scored the priceless goal for Korea in the 34th minute, but they were made to sweat in a torrid second half as Indonesia threw everything into attack, leaving gaps at the back for Korea to exploit, but neither team were able to find the net.

Indonesia up front in objecting to MidEast referee

The Football Association of Indonesia (PSSI) reportedly lodged its first official protest to the Asian Football Confederation's appointment of a referee from the United Arab Emirates to its game against Saudi Arabia before the game started but got no reply. "We asked them not to use a Middle Eastern referee,'' PSSI chairman Nurdin Halid said in a press release."We were concerned that he would not be objective. It would be neutral if the referee came from Japan or China, instead of from the Mideast. This protest is not to find an excuse for our defeat, but we could see how the referee was not on our side. It will not change the result but we hope our protest will improve the remaining matches," Nurdin said.

According to The Jakarta Post, even President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, who watched the match from a VIP box with Cabinet members, questioned the refereeing. "I don't understand why a referee who has the same language and culture as Saudi Arabia was assigned to lead this match," he said.

The newspaper said AFC Secretary-General Dato Paul Mony Samuel later promised to evaluate the complaint, adding "We will also take into account the origin of a referee before assigning them to lead a match." However AFP quoted AFC Director of Communications Clare Kenny Tipton denying the appointment was unfair to Indonesia. "There are no rules (governing which nationalities can referee which others),'' she said. "Occasionally we have a political conflict so obviously common sense prevails but there are no specific regulations other than you can't have someone from the same nationality refereeing their own country's matches.''

Indonesian claims UAE ref favoured Saudi Arabians

The Football Association of Indonesia (PSSI) has reportedly filed a letter of protest with the Asian Football Confederation complaining of poor refereeing as Indonesia lost 1-2 to Saudi Arabia in the Asian Cup match on Saturday night. Elshinta radio station quoted Indonesian referee Jimmy Napitupulu that PSSI chairman Nurdin Halid decided to send the letter of protest after President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, who came to the National Stadium to watch the match, expressed his disappointment over the poor leadership of referee Ali Al Badwawi of the United Arab Emirates.

Napitupulu said the match was supposed to have been be conducted by a referee from China, but the AFC made a sudden change before the match by appointing Badwawi as the referee. "Badwawi easily handed out five yellow cards to Indonesian players for committing light tackles agains Saudi Arabian players, but he did not look bothered with Saudi Arabian players committing fouls. Indonesia will lose two midfielders Syamsul Bachri and Eka Ramdani in the last match against South Korea following two yellow cards they earned in the first two matches," the Jakarta Post complained.

Indonesian fans began demonstrations outside the official hotel immediately after the game concluded with makeshift banners stating "The Referee is an Idiot!," "Fair Play Please," "AFC Go To Hell!" and "AFC Referee Unfair". Two representatives of the supporters met with the AFC to discuss their issues, while the remainder milled around outside the luxury hotel, smoking cigarettes and joking with police and armed guards They accused Badwawi of favoring another Middle Eastern team. "We felt cheated by the referee," Saiful Baqirok, who had made the 700-kilometre trip from Sidoarjo, East Java, told Reuters. "I think it's because the referee is from United Arab Emirates. Why not choose one from Australia?"

Asked after the match what he thought about the referee, Indonesia coach Ivan Kolev said he thought some of his decisions "were a little strange" but declined further comment. The AFC said it was preparing a statement on the protest, but none of the decisions stood out as particularly controversial or harsher than those in other games in the tournamentso far.

Nike's responsible image threatened in Indonesia

Several thousand Indonesian workers staged a noisy protest outside the Jakarta offices of Nike over a move by the US sportswear firm to phase out orders at two factories near the Indonesian capital. The demonstrators, who carried banners saying " Nike is a Blood-sucking Vampire" and "Go To Hell Nike", caused huge congestion in the central business district. The timing of the demonstrations during the AFC Asian Cup finals, which Indonesia is co-hosting, is likely to have been determined to embarrass the company which is a major supporter of the Indonesian national football team and players.

Active in Indonesia since 1989, Nike said that last year over 50 million pairs of Nike shoes, 17 million units of Nike apparel, and 12 million pieces of Nike equipment were made in local contract factories. The company said in a statement it remained committed to Indonesia, explaining its move to cut orders at the two sub-contractors that employ 14,000 workers was due to quality issues. Nike said it will cease orders at the factories owned by Central Cipta Murdaya -PT Hardaya Aneka Shoes Industry and Nagasakti Paramashoes Industry at the end of 2007. It said the move was "based on business performance issues related to their consistent inability to meet company's minimum product quality and delivery standard for two years".

However Siti Hartati Murdaya, President Director of Central Cipta Murdaya, told Adhityani Argathe of Reuters that the supplier had met Nike's standards. "Only two percent of our products are defective. Other companies can reach up to 18 percent. This unfair decision will put 14,000 people out of work which is simply unethical." Sutarti, a union leader, said Nike had halved the usual order of shoes at both factories this month and urged the firm to resume the orders or pay severance money. Nike said it would work with unions to help workers with their legal rights and other employment if needed but "It is clear under Indonesian law that the factories are responsible for severance ... so the Indonesian government reinforcing that is very important to us."

The protesters, who had demanded to speak to Nike's country representative, at one stage threatened to storm the offices. But several trucks of police and security guards prevented them from entering the building, which also houses the Jakarta Stock Exchange.

Stubborn Indonesia pipped 2-1 by Saudi Arabia

Saudi Arabia substitute Saad Al Harthi scored an injury-time header to beat Indonesia 2-1 in AFC Asian Cup Group D. Earlier, on 12 minutes, Ahmed Al Bahri sent a cross from the right where he found Yasser Al Qahtani, who headed powerfully past the Indonesian keeper. Elie Aiboy equalised on on 19 minutes, running onto a threaded through ball by Budi Sudarsono, coolly rounding the keeper and slotting home the equalizer. The goal was met with volleys of fireworks and red flares by the nearly 88,000 home fans. Saudi Arabia finished the match strongly. "I am very disappointed," said Indonesia coach Ivan Kolev. "In my view, we did enough to gain a point because we played well."

Why is Indonesia suffering Cup ticketing chaos?

Indonesia has promised to improve ticketing for its next AFC Asian Cup 2007 match after a chaotic first game in the Group D series hosted by Indonesia saw hundreds of fans break through an emergency exit and thousands more unable to get seats despite sections of the 88,000 capacity stadium being empty. “Things will be better next time,” John Halmahera, the Football Association of Indonesia (PSSI) spokesman told Associated Press. He blamed the Asian Football Confederation for some of the problems, saying the body was late in distributing tickets to local organisers. He also denied local organisers were supplying large amounts of tickets direct to scalpers and sharing the profits with them, "a common practice at popular sports and other events in Indonesia," according to AP.

The AFC said it was investigating, but did not immediately comment.

However a football observer, who did not wished to be named, told Asian Football Business Review that the AFC and its intimate marketing and commercial agent, World Sport Group, had been aware of the ticketing problem in Indonesia "for months." He said the AFC and WSG had allowed PSSI to select a Malaysian on-line ticketing company to provide internet sales even though its website was only in English (with no Indonesian language text), was suspicious of Indonesian credit cards and had no booth outlets in Jakarta, let alone the other major cities of the sprawling archipelago of 18,000 islands and 240 million persons. "What a way to market tickets in the first month - knowing that the country had low internet and credit card usage," the source commented.

When regular ticketing opened in each of the four host countries 30-days before the first game, the AFC and WSG should have also been aware that PSSI had only opened a single ticket booth at the National Stadium to sell up to hundreds of thousands of tickets for the Group D series, Quarter Final, 3rd v 4th Final (in Palembang) and Cup Final. "There were even web and blog complaints that the ticket office was not open after business hours or on weekends," the source said. "This should have sent warning bells off everywhere."

UPDATE

The Jakarta Post reports that PSSI Secretary General Nugraha Besoes has ordered more ticket booths be opened at the National Stadium and to conduct business from 9:30 am to 4 pm on 12 and 13 July. "For the match between Indonesia and Saudi Arabia on 14 July, the organisers will close sales 15 minutes after kick-off," he said. The same ticketing system will apply for the Indonesia-South Korea clash on 18 July.

Indonesian crowd inspires 2-1 win over Bahrain

Popular striker Bambang Pamungkas seized on a second-half rebound to give Indonesia a 2-1 victory over Bahrain in front of some 60,000 noisy fans in the host nation's first match of the AFC Asian Cup 2007. Budi Sudarsono had opened the scoring in the 14th minute when he slipped behind the Bahrain defense, chested the ball around the goalkeeper and fired into the bottom right-hand corner Bahrain, which reached the semifinal of the 2004 Asian Cup in China, pressed ahead and equalized 13 minutes later when Sayed Mahmood Jalal scored from close range after Indonesia's defense failed to clear a cross. Bambang' winning goal came in the 62 minute and was the best of the match.

"I want to thank all our players, they fought like soldiers on the pitch tonight. We played the ball along the ground, we had studied our opponents carefully. Our tactics were just right." said Indonesia's Coach, Ivan Kolev of Bulgaria about Indonesia's second only Asian Cup victory. "The fans were like a 12th player tonight, I thank them," he told AP. "We had four chances, but we did not score," said Bahrain's coach Milan Macala. "That was the reason we lost this game. If you want to win, you must score goals."

Macala complained about the quality of the training pitches in the Indonesian capital, which is hosting the Grand Final of this year's championship. The Czech called the practice fields a "disaster," and urged the AFC to examine them. Earlier Tuesday, Saudi Arabia's coach Helio Cesar dos Anjos made the same complaint, AP reported.

Yesterday Indonesian Vice President Jusuf Kalla paid a visit to the national team's final practice. "If you want people to remember you 25 years from now, you have to win this match," Kalla told the players when recalling Indonesia's shock 0-0 draw against heavyweight Soviet Union at the Melbourne Olympic Games in 1956. "We want you to win so that our children do not only know about Zidane or Italian league fixtures rather than those of the Football Association of Indonesia. That is shameful," Kalla said, referring to French great Zinedine Zidane, who just completed a three-day visit to Jakarta.

"Kalla also promised cash bonuses for the players should they deliver some points for Indonesia," Damar Harsanto, reported in the Jakarta Post.

Socceroos satisfied with anti-terrorist protection

Security arrangements at the Asian Cup are being tightened after intelligence reports warned of possible terrorist threats in two of the four host nations, Thailand and Indonesia. On Tuesday, Thai police said that Bangkok residents should expect tighter security in places such as airports and department stores after they ordered more checkpoints and patrols, especially in Muslim communities and the Australian government renewed its warning to citizens to reconsider travelling to Indonesia because of the "imminent threat" of an Islamist terrorist attack.

"We're monitoring it as we have been all along," John Boultbee, the head of high performance for the Australian team, told Julian Linden of Reuters. "Every place we go, whether it be Europe or Asia or wherever, we're constantly getting the latest information.The government's always very cautious and we listen to them. Indonesia is a place where Australians need to be a bit more vigilant... but we've had a full briefing security from the Asian Football Confederation and we're satisfied with the arrangements."

Zidane inspects Fustal promotion in Jakarta street

French football star Zinedine Zidane, who is completing a three-day visit in Indonesia sponsored by French food giant Danone, met Jakarta Governor Sutiyoso before joining the Governor and Indonesian ex-national player Roni Patinasarani in an open car to inspect 200 futsal fields erected on the capital city's 6.8 kilometre main thoroughfare, early Sunday morning. "Zidane's visit will increase confidence that Indonesia is safe to visit," Sutiyoso said.

In jeans and a polo shirt, Zinedane took part in a three-minute match of 'futsal' on a stretch of street playing with local celebrities and government officials. Hundreds of people crowded around the venue, apparantly Indonesia's only pre-Asian Cup publicity event, cheering Zidane using his nickname, Zizou. Taufik Yudi, Head of Sports and Youth of Jakarta Province, said the promotion hoped to break the national record for the most number of “futsal” games, FIFA's official indoor football game, held at the one time.

Indonesian optimistism overlooks stamina deficit

Although Indonesian football players Ponaryo Astaman, Bambang Pamungkas and Elie Aiboy, wearing the national team's new strip, have been depicted as 'Mahabharata' heroes on giant posters displayed in the capital city Jakarta, coach Ivan Venkov Kolev of Bulgaria is concerned about the strength of opposing teams Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and South Korea in Group D of the Asian Cup. "Saudi Arabia is more powerful than Oman. Bahrain is on the same level as Oman. Bahrain will still be a tough team to beat," Kolev said after Indonesia's recent 1-0 defeat to Oman.

Kolev said a lack of consistency on the pitch, mainly due to poor stamina levels, is the greatest obstacle the team faces. "We generally play fast in the first 36 minutes, but slow down after that. In the second half, most of our players are exhausted. This is a problem that needs to be solved," he said.

However Football Association of Indonesia (PSSI) President Nurdin Halid "remains optimistic, predicting the national squad will reach the quarterfinals of the event," Damar Harsanto reported in The Jakarta Post.