World football's governing body, FIFA, has delivered a heavy blow to the Football Association of Malaysia (FAM), officially converting three international friendly results into heavy defeats. This decisive action comes after an investigation found Malaysia fielded players who were not eligible to represent the national team.
Details of the FIFA Sanctions and Forfeited Matches
The FIFA Disciplinary Committee announced its ruling on December 12, following a breach of Article 19 of the FIFA Disciplinary Code. The committee enforced automatic 3-0 defeats for three matches where ineligible players participated.
The affected games and their overturned results are:
- A 1-1 draw with Cape Verde in May is now a 3-0 loss.
- A 2-1 victory over Singapore in September is now a 3-0 loss.
- A 1-0 win against Palestine in September is now a 3-0 loss.
A Deepening Crisis for Malaysian Football
This latest punishment adds to an existing scandal that has rocked Malaysian football. In September, FIFA had already suspended seven naturalised players for 12 months after discovering falsified documents were used to establish their eligibility.
At that time, the FAM was fined 350,000 Swiss francs (approximately $440,000). The new decision from the December meeting includes an additional financial penalty of $12,500 for the association.
The FAM had appealed the initial sanctions, but FIFA rejected that appeal in November. This rejection has pushed the Malaysian body to take the matter to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) in Lausanne.
Internal Fallout and Public Backlash
The controversy has triggered significant anger within Malaysia. Fans and lawmakers are demanding accountability from the FAM and from government agencies involved in the process of granting citizenship to the players in question.
In response to the growing crisis, the FAM has taken internal steps. Last month, the association suspended its secretary-general and established an independent committee to probe what it has termed a "technical error."
In a recent statement, the FAM indicated its next move, saying, "FAM will make a written application to obtain the reasons for the decision from the FIFA disciplinary committee before considering the next steps to be taken in this matter." The outcome of their appeal at CAS is now awaited by the football community.
