Kuala lumpur: The Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) has accepted FIFA’s decision rejecting its appeal over the documentation of seven Malaysian heritage players. Acting FAM President Datuk Mohd Yusoff Mahadi stated that they plan to write to FIFA to obtain full details and written reasons for the decision before deciding whether to submit an appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sports (CAS).

According to BERNAMA News Agency, this is the first time FAM is facing such a situation, and both the lawyers and management have expressed shock over the decision. Despite this setback, FAM remains committed to championing the rights of its players and the interests of Malaysian football on the international stage, as affirmed by Mohd Yusoff in a recent statement.

FIFA had previously issued a statement regarding its Appeal Committee’s decision on the appeals lodged by FAM and the seven heritage players. The FIFA Disciplinary Committee had found breaches of article 22 of the FIFA Disciplinary Code concerning forgery and falsification. The players involved include Gabriel Felipe Arrocha, Facundo Garc©s, Rodrigo Holgado, Imanol Machuca, Joao Figueiredo, Jon Irazabal, and Hector Hevel.

After analyzing submissions and conducting a hearing, the Appeal Committee decided to dismiss the appeals and upheld the sanctions imposed on FAM and the seven national heritage players. Consequently, FAM received a fine of CHF350,000 (approximately RM1.8 million), while each player was fined CHF2,000 (approximately RM10,560) and suspended for 12 months from all football-related activities.

FIFA’s previous statement indicated that FAM had submitted falsified documents to confirm the players’ eligibility, enabling them to compete in the third-round match of the 2027 Asian Cup Qualifiers against Vietnam on June 10. FAM later identified a technical error in the submission process involving the players’ documents, attributed to an administrative staff member.

According to the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) secretary general Datuk Seri Windsor John, the disciplinary committee will only commence its review once the final decision is received from FIFA or CAS.