Sentul, Bogor - Behind the grandeur of the 2026 FIFA World Cup hosted across the United States, Canada and Mexico, thousands of volunteers work to ensure every single detail of the tournament operations runs smoothly. One such volunteer is Angelia Hutabarat, an Indonesian national who has resided in Mexico for around a decade, who finally realised her dream of joining the world's largest football event as a volunteer.
Angelia's journey to become part of the 2026 FIFA World Cup was far from easy. At one point she even believed her dream had collapsed before it properly began. Throughout the selection period, Angel waited endlessly for updates that never arrived, despite initial selection results being scheduled for announcement in February 2026.
"The announcement was supposed to be received by February 2026, but at that time I still had not gotten any correspondence at all," Angel stated.
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With no notifications received, Angel began to assume she had failed the selection process. She returned to her regular routine working as an employee at a Mexico City based company. However, her hopes reignited one month later. In March 2026, an official email from FIFA finally arrived in her inbox.
"Thank God, it turned out the email confirmed I had been accepted as a 2026 FIFA World Cup volunteer stationed in Mexico City," she said.
FIFA subsequently assigned her as a VIP Guest Services Officer at one of the tournament's official hotels in Mexico City. Angel had originally hoped to be deployed at Estadio Ciudad de México, better known as Azteca Stadium. Though she was initially disappointed her request was not granted, she ultimately accepted the posting.
"I was a little disappointed, but in the end I accepted it," she recalled.
This decision ended up granting her unforgettable experiences. Throughout her posting, Angel got the chance to interact directly with numerous global football legends who attended the 2026 World Cup opening ceremony.
These figures included Bebeto, Cafu, Ronaldo Nazario, Marco Materazzi, Roberto Baggio, Luis Hernandez, Jared Borgetti, Santiago Solari, Hristo Stoichkov, Cristian Chivu, as well as Alfie Haaland, father of Erling Haaland.
She also met legendary Italian tenor Andrea Bocelli, who performed during the opening ceremony held at Azteca Stadium.
According to Angel, roughly one million people applied for 2026 FIFA World Cup volunteer positions globally, while applications from Mexico alone reached tens of thousands.
The selection process launched in September 2025, covering document submission, personal data registration, language proficiency assessment and prior volunteer experience verification. Out of all applicants, approximately 15,000 candidates in Mexico progressed to the interview stage held in October 2025.
Alongside gaining priceless life experience, Angel also received exclusive official 2026 FIFA World Cup volunteer merchandise that is not available for public sale.
Full family support backed her success. Both of her parents also applied as volunteers. Her mother did not pass selection, while her father cleared the initial stage but missed the deadline for the following process.
"Our whole family really loves this kind of volunteer work. Before this, we all volunteered together at an international golf tournament held in Mexico," Angel explained.
For Angel, volunteering is not merely about assisting the operations of a sporting event. This experience opens opportunities to build international networks, broaden personal perspectives, and becomes valuable long-term capital for the future.
She hopes more young Indonesians will gather the courage to apply as volunteers at global sporting events, as the experiences gained hold far greater value than only attending as a spectator.
Angelia Hutabarat's inspiring story as a 2026 FIFA World Cup volunteer is discussed in full on the ITSMe Podcast, hosted by Syafira and Pudila from ITSMe Studio in Sentul, Bogor. During the episode, Angel shared her experiences, the challenges she faced, and all the most memorable moments from her time serving at the world's largest football tournament.
