FIFA, Indonesia Vow to Improve Football Safety after Fatal Stampede

Indonesian President Joko Widodo (L) receives a ball from President of Federation Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) Gianni Infantino during their meeting at Presidential Palace in Jakarta, Indonesia, 18 October 2022. (EPA)
Indonesian President Joko Widodo (L) receives a ball from President of Federation Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) Gianni Infantino during their meeting at Presidential Palace in Jakarta, Indonesia, 18 October 2022. (EPA)
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FIFA, Indonesia Vow to Improve Football Safety after Fatal Stampede

Indonesian President Joko Widodo (L) receives a ball from President of Federation Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) Gianni Infantino during their meeting at Presidential Palace in Jakarta, Indonesia, 18 October 2022. (EPA)
Indonesian President Joko Widodo (L) receives a ball from President of Federation Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) Gianni Infantino during their meeting at Presidential Palace in Jakarta, Indonesia, 18 October 2022. (EPA)

FIFA head Gianni Infantino and Indonesian President Joko Widodo on Tuesday agreed to re-evaluate safety measures at stadiums across the country, after more than 130 people were killed in a crowd stampede at a match this month.

The head of world football's governing body was in Jakarta to meet President Widodo after Indonesia and FIFA agreed to form a joint taskforce in the wake of the stadium tragedy, and as the Southeast Asian country prepares to host the Under-20 World Cup next year.

Infantino said the first priority in Indonesia would be to reform and transform the country's football, and that football fans were owed safety and security.

The stampede, which followed a match at East Java's Kanjuruhan Stadium on Oct 1, has been blamed on police firing tear gas onto the pitch, a crowd control measure banned by FIFA.

The Indonesian Football Association (PSSI) said last week that Infantino was expected to address a meeting of the Group of Twenty (G20) major economies in Bali this November about Indonesia's readiness to host international events.

Under pressure to explain what caused one of the world's deadliest stadium disasters, a fact-finding team formed by the government released a report last week which concluded that the "excessive" and "indiscriminate" use of tear gas was the leading cause of death.



Salah Double Sends Liverpool 8 Points Clear in Premier League as United Draws First Game with Amorim

 Liverpool's Mohamed Salah leaves the pitch after the English Premier League soccer match between Southampton and Liverpool in Southampton, England, Sunday, Nov. 24, 2024. (AP)
Liverpool's Mohamed Salah leaves the pitch after the English Premier League soccer match between Southampton and Liverpool in Southampton, England, Sunday, Nov. 24, 2024. (AP)
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Salah Double Sends Liverpool 8 Points Clear in Premier League as United Draws First Game with Amorim

 Liverpool's Mohamed Salah leaves the pitch after the English Premier League soccer match between Southampton and Liverpool in Southampton, England, Sunday, Nov. 24, 2024. (AP)
Liverpool's Mohamed Salah leaves the pitch after the English Premier League soccer match between Southampton and Liverpool in Southampton, England, Sunday, Nov. 24, 2024. (AP)

It has been more than 30 years since a team held as big a lead as Liverpool after 12 rounds of the Premier League.

Not that Arne Slot is getting too excited about an eight-point advantage before even hitting December.

“It’s nice to have this position,” the Liverpool manager said Sunday after Mohamed Salah inspired a 3-2 come-from-behind win at Southampton, “but we are definitely not getting carried away.”

Only Manchester United's class of 1993-94 — under Alex Ferguson — has had a larger lead than Slot's Liverpool at this stage of a Premier League campaign. The title stayed at Old Trafford that season.

It's those kind of glory days that Ruben Amorim is trying to recreate after taking charge of United and the Portuguese coach could hardly have got off to a better start.

Only 81 seconds had elapsed before United marked Amorim's first game at the helm with a goal from Marcus Rashford at Ipswich.

United couldn't hold out and a 1-1 draw against a team destined to be battling against relegation underlined the scale of Amorim's task to turn around the fortunes of a fallen giant in English soccer.