National team taps Netherlands connection to advance global ranking
Fans raise a banner depicting a fight between Godzilla and Gundala during an Indonesia-Japan World Cup qualifying match in Jakarta in November. © Kyodo
JAKARTA — Soccer is gaining fans across Indonesia as its national team quickly moves up the global rankings, buoyed by an influx of international players with roots in the Southeast Asian country.
In an interview on Sunday, Patrick Kluivert, the new national team coach, said he accepted the position because of the team's "enormous" potential, as well as the fact that much of the country is "crazy about football."
