Malaysia Rejects FIFA Allegations of Falsified Player Citizenship Documents, Will Challenge Punishments
The Malaysian Football Association (FAM) has announced it will appeal FIFA's decision to penalize the body for supposedly forging the nationality papers of multiple overseas-born players, who have now been banned from representing the national team for one year.
The Global Football Body's Allegations and Penalties
In September, FIFA levied a penalty of $438,000 on FAM and suspended the footballers after finding that their ancestors were not born in Malaysia as stated, but rather in Argentina, Brazil, the Netherlands and the Iberian nation. The global football authority reiterated its claims about doctored documentation in a official investigation report released on Monday.
Each of the individuals – who all took part in Malaysia's 4-0 win over Vietnam in the 2027 Asian Cup qualifier this June – was also penalized $2,500.
The implicated group includes Spanish-born Gabriel Felipe Arrocha, Facundo Tomas Garces and Iraurgui, Argentinian-born Holgado and Machuca, as well as Serrano who was born in the Netherlands, and Joao Vitor Brandao Figueiredo who was born the South American country.
The Governing Body's Position on Forgery
"Forgery constitutes, plain and simple, a type of cheating," stated FIFA in its findings.
"Forging documents undermines the heart of the basic tenets of the sport, not only those regulating a athlete's qualification to play for a country's squad, but also the core ethics of a clean sport and the principle of fair play," commented Jorge Palacio, vice-chair of FIFA's ethics panel.
The Association's Response and Challenge Strategy
The international body's document states that the Malaysian association conceded it "was contacted by external agencies regarding the athletes' ancestry and failed to independently verify the authenticity of the documentation."
"Initial documentation showed a sharp contrast to the submitted papers," it said.
The organization also said it was "able to obtain the authentic papers without hindrance," which revealed a "failure in due diligence" by the Malaysian body.
The Football Association of Malaysia reacted to the global body's allegations in a official communication on Tuesday, asserting the discrepancies were the result of an "administrative error" and the players are "rightful citizens of Malaysia."
"Allegations that players 'obtained or were knowledgeable of fraudulent papers' are baseless as no solid evidence has been provided so far," the statement said.
The association will submit an formal challenge of the international body's ruling, using authentic papers that have been verified by the national authorities.
Southeast Asian Context and Political Reactions
South-east Asian countries have recently engaged in hiring campaigns for naturalised players, modelled after the Indonesian approach of bringing in born in the Netherlands players from the Indonesian diaspora.
Malaysia's sports minister, Hannah Yeoh, stated in a statement that "the football association needs to finish the challenge procedure and that they should not stay quiet but must respond clearly to every disclosure from the global authority."
"Fans are upset, hurt and let down," she added.
Current Status and Upcoming Games
Regardless of uncertainty surrounding the squad's lineup, Malaysia is now placed one hundred twenty-third in the Asian Football Confederation standings and is scheduled to compete in Asian Cup qualifiers in the coming weeks, facing the Laotian team on the upcoming Thursday.
