Italy Not an Example to Follow, Official Says

Indonesia’s top soccer official has some advice for clubs taking part in the upcoming finals of his country’s premier league championship: If you lose, don’t whine like the Italians did at the World Cup.

“On the international level, [the Italians] were not prepared to lose,” said Agum Gumelar, head of the Indonesian soccer association.

He was speaking to reporters ahead of next week’s semifinals of the Indonesian league championship, which will be played in Jakarta on July 3. The two winners meet in the finals on July 7 at the capital’s massive Bung Karno Stadium.

Gumelar said Indonesian clubs should not emulate “the bad example” set by Italy and blame their defeats on referees or alleged conspiracies.