By Fitri Hazim Hazam
KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 3 — The selection of Merdeka Stadium as the official venue for the Sultan Selangor Cup (TSSC), scheduled to take place on August 17, seeks to revive the nostalgia of Malaysian football glory.
TSSC committee chairman Tan Sri Abd Karim Munisar said the stadium is also very special and historical for Selangor and Singapore, as the latter made it to the finals of the Malaysia Cup seven times.
“The championship’s 20th edition is exceptional as His Royal Highness the Sultan of Selangor Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah Alhaj has chosen Stadium Merdeka as the match venue on August 17.
“This sacred arena also produced legends including the late Datuk Mokhtar Dahari, the late Datuk R. Arumugam, Datuk Santokh Singh, and Datuk Soh Chin Aun, who helped the national team qualify for the 1980 Olympic Games,” he said.
Abd Karim was speaking during a press conference after inspecting the Mass Rapid Transit (MRT), Light Rail Transit (LRT), and Monorail stations near the stadium yesterday.
He added the stadium’s renovation work is expected to be completed by June, and the tournament tickets will go on sale in May.
“We will allocate 1,500 tickets for the Singapore team with an expected attendance of 20,000 supporters.
“For those unable to enter the stadium, a large screen display will be set up outside,” Abd Karim said. Radio Televisyen Malaysia will broadcast the match live.
This year’s championship offers a prestigious trophy and a RM80,000 cash prize.
For the record, Selangor won the title nine times in 2001, 2003, 2005, 2008, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2018, and 2019.
Singapore clinched the title seven times in 2006, 2007, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2016, and 2017.
