🔗 Share this article

The Football Association of Malaysia (Malaysia's football governing body) has announced it will contest FIFA's decision to sanction the organization for allegedly forging the citizenship documents of multiple foreign-born players, who have now been banned from representing the country for one year.

FIFA's Claims and Fines

In September, FIFA imposed a fine of over four hundred thousand dollars on the Malaysian association and banned the players after discovering that their grandparents were not born in Malaysia as stated, but rather in the South American nation, Brazil, the European country and the Iberian nation. The global football governing body reiterated its claims about doctored papers in a disciplinary committee report released on Monday.

Each of the individuals – who all took part in Malaysia's 4-0 win over Vietnam in the qualifying match for the 2027 Asian Cup this summer – was also fined $2,500.

The implicated individuals includes Spanish-born Arrocha, Facundo Tomas Garces and Iraurgui, Argentinian-born Holgado and Machuca, as well as Hector Alejandro Hevel Serrano who was originated in the Netherlands, and Figueiredo who was hails from the South American country.

FIFA's Position on Document Falsification

"Forgery constitutes, pure and simple, a type of cheating," stated FIFA in its report.

"The act of forgery strikes at the very core of the basic tenets of football, not only those governing a player’s eligibility to play for a country's squad, but also the essential values of a fair game and the principle of fair play," commented a senior official, vice-chair of FIFA's disciplinary committee.

FAM's Response and Appeal Plan

The international body's report claims that the Malaysian association conceded it "was contacted by external agencies regarding the athletes' ancestry and failed to personally confirm the validity of the papers."

"Initial documentation indicated a sharp contrast to the submitted papers," it said.

The organization also mentioned it was "managed to acquire the authentic papers without hindrance," which highlighted a "failure in due diligence" by the Malaysian body.

The Football Association of Malaysia responded to the global body's report in a official communication on Tuesday, asserting the discrepancies were the result of an "procedural mistake" and the individuals are "legitimate Malaysian citizens."

"Allegations that players 'obtained or were aware of fake documents' are unfounded as no solid evidence has been presented so far," the statement said.

The association will present an official appeal of FIFA's decision, using original documents that have been certified by the Malaysian government.

Regional Background and Political Reactions

South-east Asian nations have recently pursued recruitment drives for foreign-born athletes, modelled after the Indonesian approach of recruiting born in the Netherlands footballers from the Indonesian diaspora.

Malaysia's minister for sports, Hannah Yeoh, said in a statement that "the football association needs to complete the appeal process and that they cannot remain silent but have to answer plainly to every disclosure from FIFA."

"Fans are angry, hurt and let down," she remarked.

Current Situation and Upcoming Matches

Regardless of doubt regarding the national team's composition, the team is now ranked 123rd in the Asian Football Confederation standings and is set to compete in qualifying matches for the Asian Cup in the coming weeks, facing the Laotian team on Thursday.