The reason for the photo shoot of the Indonesian national team jersey at the Olympic Stadium

Jakarta - Erspo CEO Muhammad Sadad revealed the reason for the photo shoot of the Indonesian national team jersey at the Olympisch Stadium, Amsterdam, Netherlands because the distance between the players was so close.

Six Indonesian national team players namely Calvin Verdonk, Mets Hilgers, Thom Haye, Sandy Walsh, Ragnar Oratmangoen and Shayne Pattynama underwent a photo shoot for the launch of the Garuda squad's combat uniform.

"Why we (chose) the Netherlands is because the distance is close. If you go by car in the Netherlands, the furthest distance between players is around two hours," said Erspo CEO Muhammad Sadad to ANTARA in Jakarta, Friday.

Of the six players who underwent the photo shoot, Verdonk (NEC Nijmengen), Hilgers (FC Twente) and Haye (Almere City) are currently playing for teams in the Dutch League.

Meanwhile Sandy Walsh (KV Mechelen), Ragnar (Dender) and Shayne (KAS Eupen) strengthen teams from the Belgian League.

The conditions that are not too far between the players from the city of Amsterdam made Erspo decide to choose the Olympisch Stadium as the location for the photo shoot.

"If you ask why, the reason is more about adjusting the players' schedule," said Sadad, his nickname.

In addition, the Olympic Stadium has a strong bond with Indonesia. The stadium, which was built in 1928, was a silent witness to the meeting between the Dutch National Team and the Dutch East Indies National Team in 1938.

The stadium, which now has a capacity of 64,000 spectators, also marked the Dutch East Indies National Team's first appearance in the World Cup.

The photo shoot resulted in an iconic photo of the six players posing outside the stadium and elicited a positive reaction from the fans.

The plan is that the jersey that has been released online by Erspo and PSSI will be worn by Mets Hilgers and friends in their struggle to win a ticket to the 2026 World Cup, starting from the two third round matches of the 2026 World Cup qualifiers in the Asian zone against Australia on March 20 and Bahrain on March 26.