AFC temporarily halts investigation into Malaysia's illegal naturalization case in their win over Vietnam national team

AFC suspends inquiry into Malaysia's controversy pending FIFA's decision on the status of naturalized players

The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) is currently putting on hold the handling of Malaysia's document forgery scandal as it awaits a verdict from FIFA's Football Tribunal regarding the eligibility of the naturalized players. The regional body is closely monitoring the case involving seven naturalized players who participated in the Asian Cup qualifying match against Vietnam last June.

"AFC is awaiting the full ruling as well as the decision from the Football Tribunal concerning the players' eligibility," said AFC Secretary General Datuk Seri Windsor John. FIFA's Disciplinary Committee has ruled that the Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) violated Article 22 of the disciplinary code by submitting forged documents to verify the origins of the naturalized players.

According to FIFA’s announcement, the Malaysian Football Association submitted verification dossiers to FIFA with altered documents to register seven players: Gabriel Felipe Arrocha, Facundo Tomás Garcés, Rodrigo Julián Holgado, Imanol Javier Machuca, João Vitor Brandão Figueiredo, Jon Irazábal Iraurgui, and Hector Alejandro Hevel Serrano. These players appeared in the match between Malaysia and Vietnam during the third round of the AFC Asian Cup 2027 qualifiers on June 10, 2025, at Bukit Jalil Stadium.

After reviewing the evidence, FIFA’s Disciplinary Committee fined FAM 350,000 CHF (Swiss francs). Each of the seven players received a 2,000 CHF fine and a 12-month ban from football activities starting from the date of the ruling notification. Additionally, the players’ eligibility issues have been forwarded to FIFA’s Football Tribunal for further examination.

Under regulations, FAM and the players have 10 days to request a detailed decision and may appeal to FIFA’s Appeals Committee according to current procedures.

Once FIFA’s decision takes effect, AFC’s Disciplinary Committee will review and decide on sanctions against FAM for the violations.