Maarten Paes Officially Becomes Indonesian Citizen, Three Ways to Win Lawsuit at FIFA and CAS
Even though there are obstacles at FIFA and CAS, PSSI has three loopholes so that Maarten Paes can immediately wear the Indonesian National Team uniform.
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Maarten Paes showed his naturalization document after taking an oath as an Indonesian citizen in Jakarta on Tuesday (30/4/2024). Maarten became the 11th naturalized player in the period of 2021-2024.
Maarten Paes, goalkeeper FC Dallas of the United States Major League or MLS, has completed the naturalization process as an Indonesian citizen. He took the oath of allegiance as an Indonesian citizen on Tuesday (30/4/2024) at the DKI Jakarta Regional Office of the Ministry of Law and Human Rights.
”I am very proud. "This is a big moment for me and I can't wait to start playing (for Indonesian National Team)," said Maarten in an official statement.
Maarten is ambitious to defend "Garuda" in the two final matches of the Second Round of the 2026 World Cup Qualifications in June. Indonesia will face Iraq and the Philippines at the Gelora Bung Karno Main Stadium in Jakarta. Shin Tae-yong's proteges only need three points to seal their place in the third round and qualify for the 2027 Asian Cup.
Also read: Four Naturalized Players Add Strength to the Indonesian National Team
However, Maarten's process of representing the Indonesian National Team will not be as smooth as his 10 colleagues who have already completed the naturalization process during the period of 2021-2024. Maarten, who meets FIFA's naturalization regulations as his grandmother was born in Kediri, East Java, faces an obstacle as he has previously represented the U-21 Netherlands Team in the 2019 and 2021 European U-21 Cup Qualifiers.
The 1.91-meter-tall player played four games in the 2019 European U-21 Championship Qualifiers when facing Cyprus, Portugal, Norway, and Gibraltar. Later, he became the main goalkeeper when the Netherlands U-21 team defeated Belarus U-21 with a score of 5-0 in the 2021 European U-21 Championship Qualifiers. However, Maarten never played in the final rounds despite being included in the Netherlands U-21 squad for the 2021 European U-21 Championship.
Maarten Paes, the goalkeeper from FC Dallas, took a photo with the Chairman of PSSI, Erick Thohir, at a dinner reception on Tuesday (30/4/2024) in Jakarta.
Five appearances with a total of 450 minutes are what make Maarten's process of defending the Garuda emblem jersey slightly hindered. Referring to one of the clauses in Article 9 of FIFA's regulations regarding the Regulations Governing the Application of The Statutes (RGAS), a player can change their nationality and association representation if they have not yet played for the official team before turning 21 years old.
In the five matches of the two editions of the U-21 European Cup Qualification, Maarten was already over 21 years old. He was born on May 14, 1998 and made his debut in the U-21 European Cup Qualification on September 10, 2019.
I believe that this country (Indonesia) deserves to be in the World Cup, that is my main goal. And, I want to play as much as possible for the Indonesian national team.
Apart from the age rule, Maarten also has two other "objections," namely having played in an official international "A" competition with the Netherlands at any level (junior or senior), and having played in the first game of an official competition at any level. However, these two clauses can be debated and broken because the UEFA European U-21 Championship Qualifiers are not part of FIFA's official competition calendar.
Also read: Indonesian National Team Squad Depth Test
Six processes
After completing the Indonesian citizen process and having an Indonesian passport, PSSI will submit a request to change Maarten's association from the Royal Dutch Football Association (KNVB) to PSSI to FIFA. It was the first process for Maarten's transfer of association status in FIFA.
Next, the FIFA General Secretariat will review the application of the PSSI and documents belonging to Maarten. In the third stage, the decision to accept or reject the PSSI and Maarten's application will be determined by the FIFA Player Status Committee.
Flow of the process of transferring naturalized player associations to FIFA.
From that decision, in the fourth and fifth stages, the FIFA Player Status Committee will issue provisions and the basis of the decision. If the request for association change is rejected, the provisions and basis can be used as material for appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS). The appeal process to the CAS is the final process that can be taken in a footballer's association transfer process.
If the request is approved, the applicant association - in Maarten's case, PSSI - does not need to go through the CAS route. And Maarten can already be registered for Indonesia's friendly matches and official tournaments.
Also read: Studded with Naturalized Players, Supporters Ask the Indonesian National Team to Beat Vietnam
Amidst these challenges, the PSSI has three areas to win their lawsuit in FIFA and - if necessary - go to the CAS route. These areas refer to the latest FIFA RGAS rules revised in 2021.
There are two clauses in Article 9 RGAS which could be an opportunity for Maarten to be approved by FIFA to defend Indonesia. Firstly, not play more than three international “A” level matches at any level in the current association. As previously mentioned, Maarten has five caps with the Netherlands U-21 in the U-21 European Cup Qualifiers, but the tournament is not part of FIFA's "A" level competition.
Secondly, FIFA suggests that the transfer of associations can be done after more than three years of a player's last match at the international "A" level with their current national association team. Even if the European U-21 Cup Qualifiers are considered by FIFA as an "A" level match, Maarten's last appearance for the Netherlands U-21 team was on November 15, 2020. This means that the match has passed more than three years.
Maarten Paes' performance during one of FC Dallas' training sessions some time ago. Maarten has become the new goalkeeper for the Indonesian National Team.
This clause served as the basis for Munir El Haddadi's request to transfer from Spain to Morocco, which was approved by FIFA in February 2021. The former Barcelona player had previously played for 13 minutes for the senior Spanish national team in the 2014 European Cup 2016 Qualifiers. As a result of his performance, Munir's first request in 2019-2020 was initially rejected by FIFA and CAS.
Thirdly, they have never participated in the final tournament of FIFA's World Cup or the final tournament of a confederation competition, such as the European Cup or the Asian Cup. This clause is the easiest to fulfill as Maarten has never received a call-up from the Dutch national team.
"I believe that this country (Indonesia) deserves to be in the World Cup, that is my main goal. And, I want to play as much as possible for the Indonesian national team. Hopefully, I can also be a role model for young players," said Maarten, who recorded three clean sheets in 10 games with FC Dallas in the MLS this season, about his target.
PSSI General Chair Erick Thohir confirmed that two other players have also started undergoing the naturalization process. They are midfielder and wing-back Calvin Verdonk from NEC Nijmegen and striker Jens Raven who plays in the FC Dordrecht youth team.
"I am focused on continuously strengthening the national team," said Erick, who hosted Maarten, Calvin, and Jens for dinner before they returned to the United States for Maarten, and Calvin and Jens went back to the Netherlands, early on Wednesday morning (1/5/2024).
