Jakarta. Newly-elected Indonesian Football Association (PSSI) Chairman Erick Thohir has established the local organizing committee for the U20 FIFA World Cup and named himself as the chairman of the committee.

When announcing the new committee in Jakarta on Thursday, Erick said he needs to act quickly to ensure smooth communication and coordination between the host country and the INAFOC, which stands for Indonesia FIFA U-20 World Cup Organizing Committee, less than three months before the major event kicks off.

"I assume the leadership role of the LOC to enable effective and efficient coordination with the INAFOC and prevent overlapping duties between the two,” Erick said in a statement.

He said the decision to immediately set up the local committee to support the existing organizing committee was based on his experience when leading the committee for the 2018 Asian Games in Jakarta and Palembang.

"The U20 World Cup, of which we are the host, is our moment to once again show to the world that Indonesia is capable of becoming an excellent host for a successful and quality tournament. We must not fail," Erick wrote.

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The local organizing committee also will discuss budget sharing with the INAFOC to provide assurance that all spending and revenues are managed properly.

"We all must act orderly in dealing with the budgets from the government and from sponsors -- either FIFA sponsors or local sponsors -- because they don’t mix,” Erick said. 

But Erick underlined that both the opening and closing ceremonies will be handled exclusively by the INAFOC.

A success in hosting the U20 World Cup will provide a window of opportunity for Indonesia to bid for the host of the World Cup, he said.

Indonesia is set to host the country’s first-ever FIFA tournament from May 20-June 11 at six stadiums in Jakarta, Bandung, Solo, Surabaya, Palembang, and Bali.

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