‘We buried dreams of our children’

Indonesian players and fans were dismayed on Thursday after the country was dropped as host of the Under-20 soccer World Cup following outrage among politicians in the predominantly Muslim nation about Israel's participation.

FIFA made the call after Indonesia's football federation (PSSI) said it had cancelled the draw for the tournament because the governor of Bali refused to host Israel's team.

One Indonesian national team player blamed politicians.

"We sacrificed our time, thoughts, sweat and even blood. But it suddenly failed due to your political reasons," striker Rabbani Tasnim Siddiq said on Instagram.

Another player, Hokky Caraka, said he had lost the chance to fulfil a "life goal to make my parents proud, scoring goals in the U-20 World Cup".

The stripping of the hosting rights also means Indonesia loses its automatic berth in the tournament.

"We have buried the dreams of our own children," coach Nova Arianto said.