Malaysia Appeals FIFA’s One-Year Ban on Foreign-Born Players

The Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) has lodged an appeal against FIFA’s decision to suspend seven national team players over an eligibility controversy. The global football body had last month imposed a one-year ban on the players and fined the FAM $440,000 after alleging that the association submitted falsified documents claiming the players had Malaysian ancestry.

FIFA stated that investigations revealed none of the affected players—who were part of Malaysia’s 4-0 victory over Vietnam in a June Asian Cup qualifier—had parents or grandparents born in Malaysia. The findings, according to the governing body, rendered the players ineligible to represent the Southeast Asian nation.

Reacting to the development, FAM’s acting president, Yusoff Mahadi, confirmed the appeal process was underway, noting that the association was making “better, more thorough, and detailed preparations” this time. He emphasized that the appeal was not rushed and was being handled with due diligence, according to Malaysia’s Bernama news agency.

Yusoff, who made the remarks during Malaysia’s 5-1 win over Laos in another Asian Cup qualifier on Tuesday, reiterated that the FAM did not intentionally violate FIFA’s rules. He insisted that the issue stemmed from a “technical error” rather than deliberate wrongdoing.