Herdman Targets the FIFA ASEAN Championship Title to Prove Indonesia is the Best in Southeast Asia

Indonesia National Team head coach John Herdman has set an ambitious target for the Garuda Squad. He emphasized that Indonesia must win the FIFA ASEAN tournament as a critical step to build a winning mentality, while cementing the nation's status as a leading power in Southeast Asian Football.

Herdman stated his current focus is fixed on two tournaments: the AFF Cup and FIFA ASEAN. According to the Canadian coach, both competitions hold strategic value for the national team's long term development.

"FIFA ASEAN is the tournament we have to win, to prove we stand at the top of Southeast Asia. This is the necessary next step we need to take, and we are here to bring that trophy home now," he stated after a meeting with President Prabowo Subianto in Hambalang, Bogor Regency.

This target aligns with the grand ambition currently being built for Indonesian Football. Herdman revealed President Prabowo shares the same vision as millions of Garuda supporters, who all long to see Indonesia compete at the FIFA World Cup finals tournament.

For Herdman, FIFA ASEAN will act as the stage to assemble Indonesia's best players and forge a competitive squad capable of performing at higher international levels.

Successfully claiming the FIFA ASEAN title, he added, will send a clear, strong statement that Indonesia deserves to be recognised as a major regional football powerhouse.

"We have the next AFF tournament approaching very soon. Then, as Mr Thohir outlined, the FIFA ASEAN tournament will follow. In my view, both these competitions present incredibly important opportunities for us," Herdman said.

For Herdman, the AFF Cup is not merely an event to chase results. This tournament will serve as a critical test for domestic players at international standard, to measure how they perform under the pressure of elite competitive matches.

This meeting with the President marks an important milestone for Herdman since he officially took charge of Indonesia National Team. He was accompanied during the visit by Minister of Youth and Sports, who also serves as PSSI Chairman, Erick Thohir.

"He is just one of 280 million people who want us to qualify for the 2030 World Cup. Everything we do, every single day we build towards this goal. We are completely focused on this qualification campaign, because succeeding will change everything in our country forever," Herdman stated.

According to Herdman, every part of the national team setup is now aligned towards one single grand objective: securing Indonesia qualification for the 2030 World Cup. This ambition is the core motivation behind every programme run by the coaching staff and national football federation.

He noted that support from the Indonesian government and public forms the critical foundation for the national team's journey. He regards the public's overwhelming passion for domestic football as an enormous asset to drive the Garuda squad forward.

With the target of winning FIFA ASEAN and the historic dream of reaching the 2030 World Cup, a new era for Indonesia's national football team has entered a phase of massive expectation. Herdman is not only tasked with delivering silverware in the near term, but also constructing solid foundations that will take Indonesian football to heights it has never reached before.