The Football Association of Malaysia will file a lawsuit with CAS, while FIFA announces the details of the disciplinary sanctions.

02/10/2025 09:12:00 pandatv

The Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) is keeping its next moves confidential amid public pressure but assures it will exert maximum effort to appeal the FIFA sanctions; if unsuccessful, it will take the case to the international sports court (CAS).

If the appeal fails, FAM has indicated it may bring the case before the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS).

Acting FAM President Datuk Yusoff Mahadi stated the association has initiated internal discussions to handle the issue. The entire executive committee was briefed during a meeting at FAM’s Kelana Jaya headquarters yesterday.

"We held a meeting to inform the Executive Committee members about the situation, the penalties, and the next steps FAM must take to address the case," Yusoff told The Star.

The Football Association of Malaysia is keeping its response measures to FIFA’s disciplinary sanctions confidential

"It is essential that they receive accurate information from us rather than other sources. At present, we are awaiting the detailed verdict and ruling from FIFA and their Disciplinary Committee."

According to Yusoff, only after receiving the detailed FIFA verdict can FAM prepare its appeal dossier:

"Once we have the official documents, we will prepare arguments based on the facts provided by FIFA. If the appeal is unsuccessful, the next step is to take the case to CAS," he said.

He also mentioned that FAM expects to receive the full report from FIFA by the end of this week.

When asked about the nature of the "technical error" leading to the sanction, and whether FAM could confirm the Malaysian origin of the players amid FIFA’s assertion that the documents were altered, Yusoff declined to comment:

"At this moment, I cannot provide further details until we have the official documents. We cannot go into specifics without full evidence. The only thing I want to affirm is that FAM is actively working to resolve the situation."

Meanwhile, attempts to reach FAM Secretary General Datuk Noor Azman Rahman, who on Sunday admitted a "technical error" by an employee in player registration to The Star reporter, were unsuccessful.

Previously, on September 27, FIFA issued sanctions: FAM was fined 350,000 Swiss francs (equivalent to RM1.8 million), and seven naturalized Malaysian players received 12-month suspensions. The group includes Facundo Garces, Rodrigo Holgado, Jon Irazabal, Hector Hevel, Gabriel Palmero, Imanol Machuca, and Joao Figueiredo.

FIFA did not disclose specific details about the reasons for the document violations, causing public speculation about what prompted such a thorough investigation.

According to sources close to FIFA, full case details may be published on the organization’s official website within the next day or two.

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