1921–1938: Colonization era Dutch East Indies, or Netherlands East Indies was the national team that represented the territory of present-day Indonesia during the
Dutch colonial era. The team was organized by the Dutch East Indies Football Union (NIVU), which became a member of
FIFA on 24 May 1924. The first recorded unofficial match of the Dutch East Indies was against
Singapore on 28 March 1921 in
Batavia, which ended in a 1–0 win. This was followed by matches in August 1928 against
Australia (2–1 win) and in 1930 against a team from
Shanghai, China (4–4 draw). In 1934, a team from
Java represented the Dutch East Indies in the
Far Eastern Games in
Manila, Philippines. The team managed to beat
Japan 7–1 in the first match, but the last two matches ended in defeat, 0–2 to
China and 2–3 to the
Philippines, resulting in the team finishing second in the tournament. These matches are considered by
World Football Elo Ratings to be the first matches involving the Indonesia national team. On 9 June 1935, two national organizations, NIVU and PSSI, joined forces and worked together to contribute players to the national team. NIVU remained the official football association of the Dutch East Indies and was admitted to FIFA membership on 14 August 1936, after first becoming a member in 1924.
1938–1945: Asia's first FIFA World Cup participant Dutch East Indies made its
FIFA World Cup debut during the
1938 edition in
France. The team advanced to the final round without playing any qualifying matches.
Japan, who were drawn in Group 12 of the
qualifying round with the Dutch East Indies, decided to withdraw from the competition. The Dutch East Indies were then ordered by
FIFA to carry out a
play-off match against one of the Group 11 participants, the
United States. The match was scheduled to be played on 29 May 1938, but never took place after the United States also decided to withdraw from the competition. This allowed the Dutch East Indies to advance to the final round as the Asia's first World Cup participant. Before
Curaçao in
2026, the Dutch East Indies had been the only team representing a colony, before becoming an independent nation, to have qualified for a FIFA World Cup.
1945–1984: Independence era at the
1956 Summer Olympics in
Melbourne. The match ended in a goalless draw After the
Second World War, followed by the
Indonesian Revolution in 1947, the national team no longer used the name Dutch East Indies and replacing it with the name Indonesia. The previous national football organization, the Dutch East Indies Football Union (NIVU) was succeeded by the
Football Association of Indonesia (PSSI). The team's first official match under the name Indonesia was on 5 March 1951 at the
Asian Games, where they lost 0–3 by the host nation
India at the
National Stadium, New Delhi. Indonesia qualified for the
1956 Olympics in
Melbourne. The team advanced directly to the quarter-finals of the tournament after the withdrawal of their first-round opponents,
South Vietnam. In the quarter-finals, the team met the
Soviet Union who had previously defeated the
United Team of Germany 2–1. The match was held on 29 November 1956, where Indonesia forced the Soviet Union to a goalless draw. This resulted the match being replayed two days later where the team lost 0–4. A milestone during this era was the gold medal victory at the
Southeast Asian Games in both
1987 and
1991. In 1987, Indonesia beat
Malaysia 1–0; while in 1991, it beat
Thailand in a
penalty shoot-out.
1998 Tiger Cup In the final group stage match of the
1998 Tiger Cup, Indonesia faced
Thailand while the both teams already through to the semi-finals, but were also aware that the winner would have to face hosts
Vietnam. Indonesia's
Mursyid Effendi deliberately kicked the ball into Indonesia's own goal as Thailand's attacker ran towards the ball. FIFA fined both teams $40,000 for "violating the spirit of the game" while Effendi was banned from international association football for a lifetime. Indonesia was rewarded with a match by the team they wanted to face; minnows
Singapore (who they ironically lost 2–1 to) in the semi-finals.
2000 AFC Asian Cup The team's second appearance in the Asian Cup was in
Lebanon in the
2000 AFC Asian Cup; again, the Indonesian team gained only one point from three games, and again, from a match against Kuwait that finished without a score from either side. Indonesia established a higher record in the
2004 AFC Asian Cup, beating
Qatar 2–1 to record the team's first-ever victory in the history of the tournament. The win was not enough for it to qualify for the second round, having fallen 0–5 to host
China and 1–3 to
Bahrain.
2004 AFC Asian Cup Indonesia then qualified for their third successful tournament in the
2004 AFC Asian Cup being grouped with China, Qatar, and
Bahrain with them winning the only match against Qatar in a 2–1 victory but crashed out of the tournament with only three points.
2007 AFC Asian Cup during the
2007 AFC Asian Cup match between Indonesia and
South Korea The
2007 AFC Asian Cup saw Indonesia co-hosting the tournament with
Malaysia,
Thailand and
Vietnam becoming the first time in the AFC Asian Cup history that four countries co-hosted the competition. In the opening match of the tournament, Indonesia faces Bahrain with goals coming from
Budi Sudarsono and
Bambang Pamungkas to secure a 2–1 win. However, in the following two matches, Indonesia suffered a 2–1 defeat to
Saudi Arabia and narrowly losing to
South Korea 1–0 which Indonesia failed to qualified to the knockout stage of the tournament.
AFF Championship Indonesia reached the finals of
AFF Championship on six occasions (2000, 2002, 2004, 2010, 2016, and 2020), albeit never managing to lift the trophy victoriously. The team's claim of regional titles came in the
Southeast Asian Games of 1987 and 1991. The
2010 AFF Championship marked one of the most euphoric moments in Indonesian football history despite the team finishing as runners-up. Under head coach
Alfred Riedl, Indonesia delivered an impressive performance throughout the tournament, including a dominant 5–1 victory over Malaysia in the opening group stage match held at
Gelora Bung Karno Stadium. The tournament saw a massive surge of national support, with Gelora Bung Karno Stadium consistently filled beyond capacity, creating an electrifying atmosphere. Millions of Indonesians followed the matches, turning the competition into a nationwide celebration. Media widely described the phenomenon as a "football fever" reflecting the unity and emotional investment of supporters across the country. Indonesia advanced to the final after defeating the Philippines in the semi-finals. However, they were ultimately beaten by Malaysia with a 4–2 aggregate score in the two-legged final. Despite the defeat, the team received widespread praise for their attacking style and fighting spirit, and the 2010 campaign is often remembered as a turning point that reignited public enthusiasm for football in Indonesia. Key players in the squad included
Bambang Pamungkas (captain),
Firman Utina (
vice-captain), and
Cristian Gonzáles. After the
Peter Withe era, the inability to fulfill the ASEAN target has been cited as the reason for Indonesia's "revolving door" in terms of team managers. Over two years, Indonesia's manager changed from Kolev to local coach
Benny Dollo who was in turn sacked in 2010. The head coach position was then held by
Alfred Riedl who failed to lift any cups and in July 2011 was then replaced by
Wim Rijsbergen.
2012–2016: Suspensions In March 2012, PSSI received a warning for the divided state of Indonesian football, whereby two separate leagues existed: the rebel
Indonesia Super League (ISL), which isn't recognized by PSSI or
FIFA, and the
Indonesia Premier League (IPL). The National Sports Committee (KONI) encouraged PSSI to work collaboratively with Indonesian Football Savior Committee (KPSI) officials to rectify the situation but KONI chairman Tono Suratman stated in March 2012 that KONI would take over the beleaguered PSSI if matters are not improved. FIFA did not state whether Indonesia would face suspension, but on 20 March 2012, FIFA made an announcement. In the lead-up to 20 March 2012, PSSI struggled to resolve the situation and looked to its annual congress for a final solution. PSSI was given until 15 June 2012 to settle the issues at stake, notably the control of the breakaway league; failing this, the case was to be referred to the
FIFA Emergency Committee for suspension. FIFA eventually set a new 1 December 2012 deadline. In the two weeks preceding the deadline, three out of four PSSI representatives withdrew from the joint committee, citing frustrations in dealing with KPSI representatives. However, FIFA stated that it would only issue a punishment to Indonesian football after the Indonesian national squad finished its involvement in the
2012 AFF Championship. In 2013, the president of PSSI
Djohar Arifin Husin signed a
Memorandum of understanding (MoU) with
La Nyalla Matalitti (KPSI-PSSI) that was initiated by
FIFA and the
AFC through the
Asian Football Confederation's Task Force. Since then, the control of
Indonesia Super League was taken by the Joint committee to remain manageable by
PT Liga Indonesia until the establishment of a new professional competition by the committee. This means the Indonesian players from
ISL were able to play and join the national team. The PSSI called players from both football leagues, ISL and
IPL to fortify the national team for the Asian Cup qualifier of 2015. On 7 January 2013, PSSI announced a list of 51 players from both sides of football leagues regardless of whether players from the breakaway Indonesia Super League (ISL) would make an appearance, allegedly ISL clubs were reluctant to release players because they doubted Djohar's leadership. in action during a friendly match against
Malaysia at the
Gelora Delta Stadium on 14 September 2014. Indonesia won 2–0 On 18 March 2013, PSSI held a congress at
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Both parties, PSSI and KPSI (breakaway group) solved their differences in four contentious points; such as; Reunification of two leagues; Revision of the PSSI Statutes; Reinstatement of the four expelled PSSI Executive Committee members
La Nyalla Mattalitti, Roberto Rouw, Erwin Dwi Budiawan, and Toni Apriliani; and agreement of all parties to the Memorandum of Understanding from 7 June 2012 on the list of delegates to the PSSI Congress based on the list of the Solo Congress of July 2011. The new PSSI called 58 players from both sides leagues (ISL and IPL) for the national squad.
Rahmad Darmawan returned as the caretaker coach of the national team with
Jacksen F. Tiago as the assistant coach. They trimmed the 58 players initially called for national training to 28. The list would then be trimmed again to just 23 players for the
Saudi Arabia match.
Victor Igbonefo,
Greg Nwokolo and
Sergio van Dijk the three naturalised players were on the final list. On 23 March 2013, Indonesia was defeated 1–2 by Saudi Arabia at home.
Boaz Solossa gave Indonesia the first goal in their campaign for AFC Asian Cup qualification; the home team started with the goal in the sixth minute but the Saudi Side fought back with the equalizer from
Yahya Al-Shehri in the 14th minute before
Yousef Al-Salem the scored what turned out to be the winner on 56th minute. In 2015, Football Association of Indonesia (PSSI) was suspended by FIFA due to government interference in the domestic competition. The announcement was made on 30 May 2015 and had an immediate impact on the national team. Indonesia would not be eligible to compete in the next round of qualifiers for the 2018 World Cup and 2019 Asian Cup, starting less than two weeks later. FIFA took action against Indonesia following a row between the local government and the football association which has resulted in the cancellation of the domestic competition. The suspension was lifted at the
66th FIFA Congress. By then, hurried perpetration was done for Indonesia in order to get in touch for the upcoming
2016 AFF Championship where Indonesia eventually reached the final and once again fell to Thailand in process.
2017–2019: Rebuilding Some weeks after finishing as runners-up in the
2016 AFF Championship, PSSI held a congress on 8 January 2017 in an effort to sign Spanish coach,
Luis Milla to handle their senior and
U-22 team. Prior to the
2018 AFF Championship, Milla departed without any explanation, causing anger among Indonesian supporters. Indonesia crashed out from the group stage in the
2018 AFF Championship, which led to the sacking of
Bima Sakti. In order to prepare for the
2022 FIFA World Cup qualification campaign, Indonesia signed Scottish coach
Simon McMenemy with hope that his successful tenure with the Philippines could reinvigorate Indonesia's performance especially when Indonesia was grouped with three Southeast Asian rivals Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam alongside
UAE. Indonesia lost all four matches including a 2–3 home defeat to Malaysia despite having taken a 2–1 lead prior followed by a home loss to Vietnam for the first time in any competitive tournaments. On 6 November 2019, PSSI decided to sack McMenemy over the national team's deteriorating performance. Indonesia traveled to Malaysia and lost 0–2 to its rival and was officially eliminated from the 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification.
2020–2025: Shin Tae-Yong era guided Indonesia to the
2020 AFF Championship final and the
2023 AFC Asian Cup After failing to qualify for the World Cup, PSSI appointed
Shin Tae-yong as the head coach of the Indonesian national team, becoming the first South Korean in Indonesia's managerial history. This appointment was based on the success of fellow Korean coach
Park Hang-seo in Vietnam. Shin was then tasked with immediately forming a team to compete in the
2023 AFC Asian Cup qualification round. Under the management of Shin Tae-yong, the majority of the senior team was reshuffled to include many young players of whom the majority were from the
Indonesia national under-23 football team. Indonesia made it to the
2020 AFF Championship final with an average player age of 23.
2023 AFC Asian Cup qualification In the
2023 AFC Asian Cup qualification, Indonesia defeated host and former Asian champions,
Kuwait, whom they had not defeated in 42 years, 2–1, to the surprise of many people, the first official win by a Southeast Asian team against a West Asian host since 2004 (when
Thailand beat
Yemen 3–0 in
Sanaa during the
2006 FIFA World Cup qualification), and was the first time in the history that a Southeast Asian team had won against a Persian Gulf team as the visitor. In the final match, Indonesia massively beat
Nepal 7–0 at the
Jaber Al-Ahmad International Stadium. Boosted by the win, Indonesia qualified for the upcoming
2023 AFC Asian Cup after a 16-year absence. Indonesia would be drawn with the top AFC rank team,
Japan,
Iraq, and Southeast Asia rival, Vietnam.
2026 FIFA World Cup qualification Indonesia began their 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification campaign in the first round, where they defeated
Brunei 12–0 on aggregate to advance. In the second round, Indonesia was drawn into a group with Iraq, Vietnam, and the Philippines, the same two teams they would later face in the 2023 AFC Asian Cup group stage. They opened the round with a 5–1 defeat to Iraq in
Basra, followed by a 1–1 draw against the Philippines in
Manila.
2023 AFC Asian Cup Indonesia then started off 2024 playing two friendly matches against
Libya at the
Mardan Sports Complex in
Turkey before flying off to Qatar for the last friendly match against
Iran as the final preparation for the 2023 AFC Asian Cup tournament, which Indonesia lost all the three matches. In the first match, Indonesia faced off against Iraq just after two months of facing each other, in a 1–3 loss. In the second match, Indonesia faced off against Southeast Asia rival
Vietnam where captain,
Asnawi Mangkualam converted a goal from the penalty spot to score the only goal in the match, it was the first time Indonesia defeated Vietnam after 7 years, as Indonesia gained 3 points. In the last group match, Indonesia lost 3–1 to the AFC top rank team, Japan. Despite with two losses in the group stage, Indonesia qualified into Round of 16 by finishing as one of the four best third-place groups which was confirmed after another match in
Group F between
Kyrgyzstan and
Oman ended in a draw. For the first time ever, Indonesia passed through to the knockout stage of the AFC Asian Cup since their first appearance in
1996 AFC Asian Cup. On 25 April 2024, PSSI president
Erick Thohir announced that Shin's contract is officially extended until 2027. , 11 June 2024. Indonesia won 2–0. In June 2024, Indonesia concluded the second round of the FIFA World Cup qualifiers with two home matches. They suffered a 0–2 defeat to Iraq but secured a 2–0 victory over the Philippines in their final group match. With this result, Indonesia finished as Group F runner-up, earning qualification for the
2027 AFC Asian Cup and advancing to the
third round of World Cup qualification for the first time in history. In the third round, Indonesia were drawn into Group C which consisted of powerhouse like
Japan,
Australia,
Saudi Arabia,
China, and
Bahrain. Indonesia started off their 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers in September 2024 where they draw 1–1 against Saudi Arabia in
Jeddah and a goalless draw with Australia at home. In October 2024, Indonesia draw 2–2 with Bahrain in
Riffa but however suffered a 2–1 defeat to China in
Qingdao. In November 2024, Indonesia suffered a heavy 4–0 defeat to Japan at home. However, in the next match, Indonesia surprised the entire world with a shock as they defeated Saudi Arabia 2–0 with
Marselino Ferdinan scoring a brace, thus breaking the record of Southeast Asian countries that have never beaten Saudi Arabia.
2024 ASEAN Championship In the
2024 ASEAN Championship, Indonesia fielded a squad primarily composed of players from the U-16 and U-20 teams, along with a few senior players who had participated in the 2023 AFC Asian Cup and the ongoing 2026 FIFA World Cup Qualification. The squad had an average age of 20.4 years. Indonesia was placed in Group B, of which contained
Vietnam,
Philippines,
Myanmar, and
Laos. Indonesia secured one victory but did not advance past the group stage.
Shin's dismissal On 6 January 2025, PSSI announced the termination of Shin Tae-yong's contract as head coach. The Indonesian FA president Erick Thohir said the dismissal was due to communication and tactical issues, with the defeat against China and failure in the ASEAN Championship being the determining factors. The dismissal triggered significant backlash from supporters, who believed that Shin had played a major role in elevating the reputation of Indonesian football.
2025: Patrick Kluivert tenure Following Shin Tae-yong's dismissal, on 8 January 2025, the PSSI officially appointed
Patrick Kluivert as head coach, with
Alex Pastoor and
Denny Landzaat assisting him with a contract until 2027. In the continuation of third round World Cup qualifiers, Indonesia's first match under Kluivert ended in a 1–5 away loss to Australia, but they bounced back by defeating Bahrain 1–0 at home. On 5 June 2025, Indonesia managed to defeat China 1–0, their first win against the latter in 38 years. The win advanced Indonesia to the
fourth round of World Cup qualification.
Elimination from the World Cup qualification and dismissal However, in the fourth round, Indonesia was beaten by
Saudi Arabia 2–3 and
Iraq 0–1, thus eliminating Indonesia from the World Cup contention. Following the elimination, widespread fan disappointment sparked calls for Kluivert’s immediate dismissal. The anger intensified after Kluivert and his assistants returned to the Netherlands without issuing an apology or accepting responsibility for the defeat. On 16 October 2025, PSSI decided to parted ways with Kluivert and the rest of the coaching staffs through a mutual agreement.
2026: John Herdman appointment On 3 January 2026, PSSI officially appointed former
Canada national team head coach
John Herdman as the new head coach of the national team. Herdman made his debut in the
2026 FIFA Series, with a 4–0 win against
Saint Kitts and Nevis. Indonesia finished second in its section of the FIFA Series after a 0–1 defeat against
Bulgaria in the following match. ==Team image==