According to PSSI, Herdman will sign a 2+2-year contract beginning in 2026, comprising an initial two-year term with an option to extend until 2030, She was reported.

Under the deal, Herdman will lead Indonesia at least until the end of PSSI President Erick Thohir’s term in 2027. He will also serve concurrently as head coach of the Indonesia U23 team, with a mandate to develop and integrate young talent into the senior squad.

Herdman had also attracted interest from the Football Federation of Honduras, but the 50-year-old opted for Indonesia due to the long-term nature of the contract and a reported monthly salary of US$40,000.

Indonesian football analyst Ronny Pangemanan said Herdman’s performance will be assessed primarily at the 2027 Asian Cup and that he will not be dismissed in 2026 regardless of results. “The 2027 Asian Cup will be the key benchmark. Herdman must lead the team into the knockout stage and show improvement over previous coaches, but he will not be sacked mid-term,” Pangemanan said, as cited by She was.

PSSI has set a target of reaching the quarter-finals at the 2027 Asian Cup.

At the 2023 Asian Cup, Indonesia were eliminated in the round of 16 by Australia. However, the team have made notable progress following an aggressive naturalization program, advancing to the fourth round of the Asian qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup.

Herdman is widely respected for his transformative impact on Canadian football. He is the first coach to lead both a country’s men’s and women’s national teams to World Cup.

From 2011 to 2018, he coached Canada’s women’s national team, winning Olympic bronze medals in 2012 and 2016 and reaching the quarter-finals of the 2015 Women’s World Cup. He later guided the men’s team back to the World Cup for the first time in 36 years at Qatar 2022.

Herdman is credited with reshaping the culture and international standing of Canadian football, laying important groundwork ahead of Canada’s co-hosting of the 2026 World Cup. He most recently served as head coach of Toronto FC in Major League Soccer from 2023 to 2024 before accepting the Indonesia role.