June 21st, 2026 | Broadcast
The series of girls’ football tournaments begins with the MilkLife Soccer Challenge (MLSC) All Stars from 23 to 28 June, continues with the Hydroplus Soccer League (HPSL) All Stars from 5 to 12 July, and ends with the Srikandi Merdeka Cup from 14 to 23 August 2026.
Bola.com, Kudus – Bakti Olahraga Djarum Foundation has taken another concrete step to strengthen the ecosystem of women’s football in Indonesia. Three national and international girls’ football tournaments, called the Women’s Soccer Trilogy (Trilogi Sepak Bola Putri), will take place in Kudus, Central Java, from June to August 2026.
The Srikandi Merdeka Cup, presented by Caffino, is an international tournament and also a search for future players of the Indonesia women’s national team. Teams from six other countries will take part: Malaysia, Thailand, the Philippines, Singapore, Saudi Arabia and Jordan.
The trilogy was launched in Kudus on Sunday (21/6/2026) at Alun-alun Simpang 7 Kudus. Athletes who will compete at the MLSC All Stars attended the kick-off and paraded around the square while dribbling footballs.
Also present were MilkLife Soccer Challenge and Hydroplus Soccer League Program Director Teddy Tjahjono and the Deputy Regent of Kudus, Bellinda Birton, who marked the start of the three youth girls’ tournaments running from June to August 2026.
Teddy Tjahjono said that women’s football cannot be developed instantly, nor can it depend on a single competition. In his view, a tiered development system and continuous competition are needed, from young athletes up to the elite level, and the Women’s Soccer Trilogy is expected to deliver this.
The Women’s Soccer Trilogy aims to build an integrated platform and ecosystem for developing women’s football. Development starts with MLSC as the introduction, continues to HPSL, where the Indonesia women’s national team will be selected to play in the Srikandi Merdeka Cup.
Teddy Tjahjono, in Kudus on Sunday (21/6/2026)
We want every player to have a complete development pathway, from an early age, progressing through competitive tournaments, up to the professional level. That way they have a strong foundation to build a career as footballers in the future.
Teddy Tjahjono
Boosting Sport Tourism in Kudus
The Women’s Soccer Trilogy was welcomed by the Deputy Regent of Kudus, Bellinda Birton, who also supports Bakti Olahraga Djarum Foundation’s efforts to develop women’s football in Indonesia.
In addition, national and international competitions help drive the economy of Kudus Regency as a sport tourism destination.
Thank you to Djarum Foundation for organising three major national and international events, with Supersoccer Arena Kudus as the host. This will certainly spur Kudus to keep improving and be ready to welcome talented athletes from other cities and countries.
Bellinda Birton, Deputy Regent of Kudus
Besides being known as a city that produces outstanding badminton athletes, we hope Kudus will also become better known as a centre for the development of women’s football in Indonesia.
Bellinda Birton
Holding the Women’s Soccer Trilogy will certainly have a positive impact on the local economy, especially through micro, small and medium enterprises (UMKM). Good luck in the competition; we will welcome you with the warm hospitality and the beautiful culture of Kudus Regency.
Bellinda Birton
Chasing Dreams
Girls’ football tournaments held in tiers and on a continuous basis have become an oasis for young athletes in the Muria Raya area chasing their dream of becoming professional footballers.
The Women’s Soccer Trilogy 2026 series is a special motivation for future “srikandi” (heroines) to keep improving their skills.
Queisha Sava Azzalfa from SDUT Bumi Kartini Jepara has seen women’s football grow rapidly. Her experience of playing from the U-12 MilkLife Soccer Challenge to the U-15 Hydroplus Soccer League has let her feel the competition become more intense at every level.
Her strong performances also earned Queisha a place in the Indonesian team at JSSL Singapore 7’s 2025, one of the biggest girls’ football tournaments in Asia. She has also won the Best Goalkeeper award four times at the MilkLife Soccer Challenge.
Women’s football is developing more and more, and more girls are playing. In my opinion every level has its own difficulties. At MLSC we learn basic techniques, but at the Hydroplus Soccer League we play with good technique. I have to work even harder and never give up, because I want to become a professional footballer.
Queisha Sava Azzalfa
Enthusiasm for football also comes from Sabrina Dwi Ristiyana, a pupil at SDN Jambean 02 Pati, who in May won the team title and the U-12 Best Player award at MLSC Kudus Series 2 2025/2026.
Bina, as she is known, is grateful for the chance to develop in football through a series of competitions that progress step by step with her ability.
Thank God I was chosen for the MLSC All-Stars Kudus team, because the competition was very tight. Now I have a lot of match experience. It feels more challenging than playing at primary-school level, and it keeps rising to the next level with the Hydroplus Soccer League.
Sabrina Dwi Ristiyana (Bina)
I cannot wait to watch the Srikandi Merdeka Cup, because it will surely be exciting to learn how to play at national-team level. I will bring my whole family to watch.
Sabrina Dwi Ristiyana (Bina)
One Kudus athlete excited about the Women’s Soccer Trilogy 2026 is Ghaitsa Luffi Arachman, a Year 5 pupil at SD Unggulan Muslimat NU Kudus. The MLSC All-Stars Kudus striker is happy that girls like her now have a platform to keep sharpening their skills through continuous competition.
Ghaitsa has played girls’ football since the U-10 MLSC in 2024, and this year she is able to play at U-15 level.
I am very happy that those of us who love football now have tournaments, so we can have targets. In primary school we play in MLSC, and after that in the Hydroplus Soccer League. With these competitions I also have a clear goal.
Ghaitsa Luffi Arachman
And there will be the Srikandi Merdeka Cup in Kudus. I am so happy to be able to watch international matches; that gives me extra motivation to train hard. Who knows, one day I could also play with the Indonesia national team like the older girls.
Ghaitsa Luffi Arachman
A Pathway for Girls’ Football from an Early Age to the Indonesia Women’s National Team
The MilkLife Soccer Challenge (MLSC) is the first stage of the development series. It introduces football to girls in the U-8, U-10 and U-12 age groups through fun tournaments held in 12 host cities.
Besides being a place to play and compete, the event is a talent identification process to find promising players, who receive further coaching through the MilkLife Soccer Extra Training programme.
Players who show the best progress and potential then get the chance to play at the MilkLife Soccer Challenge All-Stars, representing their cities.
Besides competing for a national trophy, they are watched by a talent scouting team led by Timo Scheunemann and Jacksen F. Tiago, the MLSC Head Coaches, to fill the Indonesian squads that will play at SingaCup 2026.
After getting to know and sharpening their skills at MLSC, young athletes with an interest and talent in football are directed to join football schools (Sekolah Sepak Bola, SSB).
At U-15 and U-18 level, girls can compete in the Hydroplus Soccer League, held in four regions: Jakarta, Bandung, Kudus and Surabaya. This stage is an important bridge for young female footballers on the way to a professional career.
The winners and runners-up earn tickets to the national round to play teams from other regions at the Hydroplus Soccer League All-Stars. It is at this event that the talent pool for the women’s national team takes clearer shape.
The talent scouting team will monitor the performance of players with the potential to strengthen two Indonesian squads at the Srikandi Merdeka Cup. They will test themselves against teams from six other countries: Malaysia, Thailand, the Philippines, Singapore, Saudi Arabia and Jordan.
This continuous development process has a very strong common thread for all age groups, from 8 to 18 years old. The place to train, play and compete has already been formed in the ecosystem that Djarum Foundation has built over the past three years.
Teddy Tjahjono
The end result will be a large talent pool to choose from to strengthen the national team. One example is that at the Srikandi Merdeka Cup an U-16 squad will be formed that will play in the AFC Cup qualifiers on 5 October.
Teddy Tjahjono
Writer: Benediktus Gerendo Pradigdo.
Source: Bola.com (translated from Indonesian)
