Malaysia Denies FIFA Accusations of Falsified Player Citizenship Documents, Will Challenge Sanctions
The Malaysian Football Association (Malaysia's football governing body) has declared it will appeal FIFA's decision to sanction the body for allegedly falsifying the citizenship documents of seven foreign-born players, who have now been banned from representing the country for 12 months.
The Global Football Body's Allegations and Fines
In September, FIFA levied a fine of $438,000 on the Malaysian association and banned the players after finding that their grandparents were not Malaysian by birth as claimed, but rather in Argentina, Brazil, the European country and the Iberian nation. The global football governing body reiterated its assertions about falsified documentation in a official investigation report published on the start of the week.
Each of the individuals – who all took part in Malaysia's four-nil victory over Vietnam in the 2027 Asian Cup qualifier this June – was also penalized twenty-five hundred dollars.
The accused individuals includes born in Spain Arrocha, Facundo Tomas Garces and Jon Irazabal Iraurgui, born in Argentina Holgado and Imanol Javier Machuca, as well as Serrano who was born in the Holland, and Joao Vitor Brandao Figueiredo who was born Brazil.
The Governing Body's Position on Forgery
"Forgery represents, plain and simple, a type of dishonesty," stated FIFA in its report.
"The act of forgery strikes at the very core of the fundamental principles of football, not only those regulating a athlete's qualification to represent a national team, but also the core ethics of a fair game and the concept of sportsmanship," added a senior official, deputy chairperson of FIFA's ethics panel.
The Association's Reply and Appeal Plan
The international body's report claims that FAM admitted it "was contacted by external agencies regarding the players’ heritage and failed to personally confirm the authenticity of the papers."
"The original birth certificates indicated a sharp contrast to the submitted papers," it said.
The organization also mentioned it was "managed to acquire the relevant original documents without hindrance," which highlighted a "lack of proper diligence" by FAM.
FAM reacted to FIFA's allegations in a statement on Tuesday, maintaining the inconsistencies were the outcome of an "administrative error" and the players are "legitimate Malaysian citizens."
"Claims that players 'obtained or were knowledgeable of fraudulent papers' are baseless as no solid evidence has been provided so far," the announcement said.
The association will submit an formal challenge of the international body's decision, using original documents that have been certified by the Malaysian government.
Regional Background and Official Responses
Southeast Asian countries have recently pursued hiring campaigns for foreign-born athletes, inspired by Indonesia's strategy of recruiting Dutch-born footballers from the overseas community.
Malaysia's minister for sports, Hannah Yeoh, said in a statement that "the football association must finish the challenge procedure and that they should not stay quiet but must respond clearly to every disclosure made by FIFA."
"Fans are angry, disappointed and disappointed," she added.
Current Situation and Upcoming Matches
Regardless of uncertainty regarding the national team's composition, Malaysia is now ranked one hundred twenty-third in the Asian Football Confederation standings and is set to play in Asian Cup qualifiers this month, meeting the Laotian team on the upcoming Thursday.
