Jakarta Casual

For me, football is football. It matters not one jot if I'm watching a Champions League game between Inter and Real Sociedad or dropping down the pyramid to see Southwell City entertain Newark Town in a local derby. It's all about the experience, the atmosphere, the day out. In an ideal world, it would be following the Arsenal home and away but the ballot has ended any notion of being a fan and now, as a customer, I can pick and choose my games.

In Indonesia, people would be surprised to meet a bule who went to local football and local football fans would be surprised to meet a bule who went to Liga 3 games. I would be asked if I was a player. Or a coach. People would want their photo taken with this strange creature. Others would ask what is Liga 3 and to be fair that is a bloody good question!

You know when you see those shaky YouTube videos of match officials being attacked? They're probably Liga 3 games! But beyond the personal safety of men with whistles, Liga 3 is a logistical nightmare, even in a normal season.

Persijap fans at the 2020 Liga 3 Final

Normal season? The 2020 season ended in December. The following season was cancelled due to Covid. The calender was switched for the 2021/22 campaign. 2022/23 was cancelled following the Kanjuruhan Tragedy. So, yeah...normal!

So, with a tip of the hat to the indefatigable chaps who update the Wiki pages, let's get up close and personal to the third tier of Indonesian football and find out what all the fun is about!

The 2023/24 season ended in June with Adhyaksa Farmel defeating Persibo 3-2 in the Final in Cibinong after extra time. It marked the end of a campaign which had started back in August and gone through a number of rounds.

First up was the Provincial Round. Don't expect to find a fixture list, everything depends on the provincial football associations and out there in the boonies the writ of Jakarta is very far away - things get done at the whim of local officials. 473 teams started out in the Provincial Round from Aceh in the west to Papua in the east.

After the regional phase, 80 teams went on to what is called the National Round and they were drawn in to 16 groups of five teams each. Group A for example was held at the recently renovated, and renamed, Benteng Reborn Stadium in Tangerang and featured hosts Persikota, Kartanegara (East Kalimantan), Persab (Central Java), MBS United (Riau) and Persidago (Gorantalo). They played each other once and the top two in each group went to the next round.

Then on it's like any other competition. The 32 are divided into eight groups of four where they play each other once. Top two go on to the next round where they are still in groups of four. The semi final stage if you like has two groups of four with the teams finishing top going on to the final to decide the Liga 3 Champions. The top three in each group earn promotion meaning the 2024/25 Liga 2 season will see Adhyaksa Farmel (Liga 3 Champions), Persibo (Runners Up), Dejan, Persekas, Persikota and Persiku added to its ranks. 

Easy, innit?! 

Interestingly, all six newly promoted sides are based in Java. 

Persikota fans

Farmel, who were based in South Tangerang, won back to back titles having won the Banten Provincial Round in 2023. Another Banten based side is Persikota who find themselves back in Liga 2 after many, many years in the wilderness and who knows...could we see the Tangerang Derby revived in the near future?

Liga 1 and Liga 2 are slated to start in August. As for the new Liga 3 season...

If you were able to track down fixtures, if you were flexible and if you had the patience then following Liga 3 games would be a groundhoppers wet dream. For me, I'm at the age where, tempting though bouncing round the roads of North Sulawesi may once have been in search of elusive fields, I'm happy enough with anything relatively close to Jakarta!

# posted by Me @ 12:13 PM