Jakarta ¨C Erick Thohir once owned Inter Milan and still has an interest in English club Oxford United, but the abiding football dream of the Indonesian businessman-cum-politician is to take his country back to the World Cup.
Football is followed passionately by tens of millions in the Southeast Asian archipelago but Indonesia¡¯s sole World Cup appearance came as the Dutch East Indies in 1938, and the country has rarely threatened a return since independence in 1945.
Thohir, who became chairman of the national soccer association (PSSI) last year, believes that Indonesia should at least be in the frame for a trip to the finals in 2026 with up to nine slots available to Asian teams.
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