MANAHAN STADIUM THE VENUE FOR AFF U16

The city of Bandung was initially chosen as the venue for the four-team championship but due to the presence of the die-hard football fans in what is considered as the heartland of Jawa, the Indonesia FA (PSSI) decided to move the venue instead.

The four teams taking part this year are hosts Indonesia, Vietnam, Timor Leste and China.

“The people of Solo are just fanatical football lovers and we are quite confident that they will come and support this championship,” said Nugraha Besoes, the secretary general of the PSSI.

Apart from the tournament per se, the championship is also being used by the four teams in preparation for the AFC U16 Championship which will be held in Tashkent, Uzbekistan in October.

In the meantime Petri Octavianus from the local organising committee said that the city of Solo is already making preparations to host the championship next month.

“We are constantly in contact with the Solo authorities and they are very enthusiastic to make this championship a success. The facility in and around the Manahan Stadium is excellent,” added Petri.