Mathew Baker: Dream of playing in U-17 World Cup becomes reality

Indonesia U-17 national team defender Mathew Baker expressed his joy after his team secured qualification for the U-17 World Cup 2025 — an achievement that had previously only been a dream.

The Garuda Asia squad secured their ticket to the world tournament after an impressive performance in the U-17 Asia Cup 2025. Bima Sakti‘s team recorded consecutive victories in the group phase — defeating South Korea 1-0, Yemen 4-1, and Afghanistan 2-0.

Despite advancing to the quarter-finals, I Putu Panji Apriawan and his teammates’ journey ended after suffering a heavy 0-6 defeat to North Korea — however, this did not diminish their achievement of qualifying for the U-17 World Cup.