REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, JAKARTA - The Australian Ambassador to Indonesia, Greg Moriarty, and AFC Asian Cup Australia 2015 Local Organizing Committee Chief Executive Officer Michael Brown issued an invitation to Indonesian football fans to travel to Australia for the Asian Cup in January 2015.

“Football is helping to strengthen cultural, social and economic ties between Indonesia and Australia,” Ambassador Moriarty said in a written statement on Wednesday. “The Australian A-League Club, Central Coast Mariners is playing in Indonesia for the Menpora Cup in September 2013. And then Australia will host the Asian Cup in January 2015, which we hope Indonesia qualifies for.”

Indonesia is in Group C of qualifying for AFC Asian Cup Australia 2015 alongside Saudi Arabia, China and Iraq. The ‘Merah Putih’ plays China in the next qualification match in Jakarta on October 15.

Brown said the AFC Asian Cup, to be staged in Australia for the first time in 2015, would be a festival of football showcasing Asia’s best footballers.

"In 2007 when Indonesia hosted the Asian Cup the stands of Gelora Bung Karno Stadium where full, including with many Australian fans who travelled for the event,” Brown said. “We hope to see many Indonesians travel to Australia in 2015 to support Indonesia if they qualify and to watch some of the world’s best footballers.” 

Matches in AFC Asian Cup Australia 2015 will be played in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Canberra and Newcastle. The tournament is the pinnacle for the 46 nations of the AFC which represent half the world’s population and some of the most passionate football fans anywhere.

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