The Indonesian national football team has now established itself as not just an 'emerging powerhouse,' but as the most 'expensive national team' in Southeast Asia.
On the 20th (Korean time), Indonesia Liputan6 stated, 'The Indonesian national team has the highest market value squad among the ASEAN Football Federation (AFF) countries,' expressing pride.
The media analyzed the market capitalization rankings of Southeast Asian players, citing data from the European transfer market specialized site Transfermarkt, and reported that most of the top 10 are occupied by Indonesian nationals.
The key player is Jay Izuz (Venezia). Born in the Netherlands, he naturalized based on his Indonesian mother's lineage and serves as the team captain. Izuz has played 35 matches this season in Italy's Serie A, and his market value is set at €7.5 million (11.8 billion won), making it the highest for players from Southeast Asia.
Despite Venezia being relegated, many European clubs are considering signing him.
In addition to Izuz, a number of naturalized players from Europe, including Miss Hilgers (Twente), Kevin Diks, and Emil Audero, are wearing the Indonesian national uniform. Their total market value exceeds €22.2 million (35 billion won).
The Indonesian Football Association has categorized all of these players as 'players connected to Indonesia by even a drop of blood' and integrated them into the national team.
Recently, based on the success of this naturalization policy, an achievement of advancing to the final qualifiers (4th qualifying round) for the 2026 North and Central America World Cup was also realized. Patrick Kluivert, a Dutch legend who took over after former coach Shin Tae-yong stepped down, is restructuring the team around naturalized players from Europe whom he knows well.
While countries like China and Vietnam rely on 'homegrown tactics,' Indonesia has strategically elevated its strength through 'international talent transfusion.' This approach involves thoroughly tracing back through grandparent lineage to classify individuals as Indonesian and push for naturalization unconditionally.
As a result, players rich in European experience, including Jay Izuz, Calvin Verdongk (€2.5 million, 3.9 billion won), Maarten Paes, and Dean James (both €1.8 million, 2.8 billion won), Ole Romani (€1.2 million, 1.8 billion won), have chosen to take on Indonesian nationality. Even based solely on market capitalization, they boast overwhelming strength across Southeast Asia.
This trend is affecting Malaysia as well. Malaysia is rapidly incorporating naturalized resources like Immanuel Machuka (€2.5 million, 3.9 billion won) and Joao Pigueiredo (€2.1 million, 3.3 billion won), following Indonesia's model.
Local football experts analyzed, 'Southeast Asian countries are now transforming their national teams around players with market value and international experience to advance to the World Cup.'
In the past, if Southeast Asian football was driven out of the international stage under the pretext of 'the limitations of technique and fitness,' now it is accelerating its transformation by absorbing European assets beyond national borders. Indonesia is at the center of this.
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