Bahrain have been in every headline of the news lately, and it is not because of their in field performance or football standing but because of their controversial decision to pull out from the World Cup qualifying match which will be held in Indonesia. Accordingly, there are “safety concerns” in question. However, fans and other football commentaries suggest that this decision held a deeper bearing as the two countries recently tied in a match. With a 2-2 score for their recent match. This match became a subject for every social media which paved a way for online bullying and abuse to take place against the team of Bahrain. Accordingly, Bahrain received numerous death threats and abusive comments from angry and dismayed Indonesians, which is why the team did not push through on the upcoming match. To know more about this intense clash between the two teams, follow NowGoal for more.

What Sparked Fury Between the Two Teams

If we look at football in a rational way, it is nothing but a game, a sport that each team plays to entertain. However, sometimes a game could stir up a lot of emotions, even those that are not too pleasant, and sometimes, what’s supposed to be just a friendly game could end up being quite territorial. A game between the teams of Bahrain and Indonesia took place last Thursday, this resulted to a draw between the two and ended up in a 2-2 draw which was made possible because in the last minute of the game, Bahrain was able to earn a buzzer beater which have truly set the tone for the upcoming matches ahead. You may watch the game on NowGoal.

What triggered most fans about the results of the game is how Bahrain was able to earn their last score within 99 minutes into the match. For the crowd, this was already beyond the six minutes stoppage time which had been clearly established by the game officials before the match took place. In the game, Bahrain’s score was already three minutes beyond, thus, it is only acceptable for Indonesia to react harshly about it. In fact, this action sparked an outrage from the Indonesian time, as it seems to them that the time was intentionally added and extended. They even accused Ahmed Al Kaf, the Omani referee, of having favoritisms in the side of Bahrain.

Indonesia’s Response to Threats Allegations

While the issue has truly taken a toll for both teams, the Indonesian Football Association (PSSI) could not bear to stay silent for the thrown allegations. While they openly expressed their frustration about the situation, PSSI executive member, Arya Sinulingga expressed how disappointed he was due to the refereeing done during the game. He pointed out that the extending of the stoppage time truly seems to be intentional. He said this could be a power move to give Bahrain a favor. Although no official statement from the governing body was made, nor a resolution for the action, it is quite evident that PSSI did not take the situation lightly as they have already filed an official complaint to both FIFA and the Asian Football Confederation (AFC). Know more about their complain only here on NowGoal.

The Heated Online Discourse

The recently concluded match that has resulted in a lot of misunderstandings and heated arguments slowly progresses into something that is far more worse than just a football debate. After the match, there has been a massive online harassment that has been spreading over all types of platforms that targets Bahrain’s players, coaches and above all, the referee in charge, this is allegedly a backlash form Indonesian fans who just like the team were very much dismayed about the circumstances in the game. Upon visiting social media platforms, it could be directly observed that it was flooded with negative words, strong accusations, derogatory statements, and even threats for the Bahrain team. What’s more alarming is that Al Kaf, who was the referee during the concluded game, was impersonated. A dummy account by some random strangers attempted to steal Kaf’s identity to spread misinformation, further causing more damage to his image and reputation.

Al Kaf, who is an Omani referee is being criticized hugely online, allegedly, he demonstrated personal favorites towards the game which resulted in the extended stoppage time which is the triggering factor for fans of the opposing team to start an outrage. Despite these allegations, Al Kaf was not held accountable for anything because no evidence was presented proving that he really did commit favors, however, this action really got negative comments from fans, especially from Indonesia. In addition to all the hate that Bahrain has been already receiving recently, the Bahrain’s Football Association (BFA) also made a statement about how their official website has been dominated by hackers. No matter who these hackers may be, one thing is certain, it is not helping in resolving the issue but even worsens the already bad situation the football teams are facing right now. What’s your opinion about this? Share it to us, only here on NowGoal.

Bahrain’s Decision Not to Push Through Due to Safety Concerns

Due to the amount of online abuse and cyberbullying that Bahrain have encountered throughout the few days, they made a very controversial decision of not pushing through their upcoming game in Jakarta, instead, they requested that the game take place in a more neutral venue. According to BFA’s explicit statement, they emphasized how frightened they are for all of their players and staff’s safety, especially now that the tenson is still now cooling off between the two teams. In their request to FIFA, they emphasized that they only want to  “protect the lives of the team members” while also citing the amount of death threats they received in the span of a few days.