Jakarta. Two Indonesian football clubs reportedly intend to make an initial public offering, which is a surprising step in the country's developing football sector.

"There were two football clubs from Java, which came [to learn about IPO]," Indonesia Stock Exchange (IDX) president director Tito Sulistio said on Tuesday (07/03), as quoted by state news agency Antara.

However, to become listed companies will not be easy for the clubs, Tito said.

"The problem is that they put players' salaries as expenses, contrary to that is done abroad where wages are considered an asset," he said.

"We've asked the Institute of Indonesia Chartered Accountants [IAI] to look into the matter," he added.

With many complaints over unprofessional management even at Indonesia's most elite clubs, teams need to improve their accounting, governance and transparency, IAI executive Djohan Pinnarwan said.

Becoming a listed company is not new to some of the European clubs, with Manchester United of England being present on the New York Stock Exchange and Italian clubs Lazio, Juventus and AS Roma on the Italian Stock Exchange.

While football fans are very aware that West Java's Persib Bandung once declared their plans to make an IPO, Tito has not disclosed which clubs have visited him to seek information about the stock exchange mechanisms.