The Malaysian Football Association Rejects FIFA Accusations of Falsified Player Nationality Documents, Vows to Appeal Sanctions
The Malaysian Football Association (Malaysia's football governing body) has announced it will contest FIFA's ruling to sanction the organization for allegedly forging the citizenship documents of multiple foreign-born players, who have now been suspended from playing for the country for 12 months.
The Global Football Body's Claims and Fines
In September, FIFA levied a penalty of $438,000 on FAM and suspended the players after finding that their grandparents were not Malaysian by birth as claimed, but instead in the South American nation, the Brazilian nation, the Netherlands and the Iberian nation. The global football authority reiterated its claims about falsified papers in a official investigation report published on Monday.
Each of the players – who all took part in Malaysia's 4-0 win over the Vietnamese team in the 2027 Asian Cup qualifier this summer – was also penalized twenty-five hundred dollars.
The accused group includes born in Spain Arrocha, Facundo Tomas Garces and Jon Irazabal Iraurgui, born in Argentina Rodrigo Julian Holgado and Machuca, as well as Hector Alejandro Hevel Serrano who was originated in the Holland, and Joao Vitor Brandao Figueiredo who was hails from Brazil.
The Governing Body's Position on Forgery
"Forgery constitutes, pure and simple, a type of cheating," said FIFA in its report.
"The act of forgery strikes at the very core of the fundamental principles of the sport, not only those governing a athlete's qualification to represent a country's squad, but also the essential values of a fair game and the concept of fair play," commented Jorge Palacio, deputy chairperson of FIFA's disciplinary committee.
FAM's Response and Appeal Plan
The international body's report claims that the Malaysian association admitted it "received inquiries by third parties regarding the athletes' ancestry and failed to independently verify the authenticity of the papers."
"The original birth certificates indicated a sharp contrast to the documentation provided," it said.
FIFA also said it was "able to obtain the authentic papers without hindrance," which highlighted a "failure in due diligence" by FAM.
The Football Association of Malaysia responded to the global body's report in a official communication on Tuesday, asserting the discrepancies were the outcome of an "procedural mistake" and the individuals are "rightful citizens of Malaysia."
"Allegations that players 'acquired or were knowledgeable of fraudulent papers' are baseless as no concrete proof has been presented so far," the announcement said.
The association will present an official appeal of FIFA's decision, using authentic papers that have been certified by the Malaysian government.
Regional Background and Political Reactions
South-east Asian countries have recently engaged in recruitment drives for foreign-born athletes, inspired by the Indonesian approach of bringing in born in the Netherlands footballers from the Indonesian diaspora.
Malaysia's minister for sports, the official, stated in a release that "FAM needs to finish the appeal process and that they cannot remain silent but must respond clearly to every disclosure made by the global authority."
"Fans are angry, hurt and let down," she added.
Present Status and Forthcoming Games
Despite uncertainty regarding the national team's lineup, Malaysia is now ranked one hundred twenty-third in the Asian Football Confederation standings and is scheduled to compete in Asian Cup qualifiers in the coming weeks, meeting Laos on Thursday.
