AFC announces sanctions for the Football Association of Malaysia

The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) has recently revealed a series of penalties for its member associations, including Malaysia,

Recently, the AFC issued multiple sanctions against member associations due to violations in organizing matches during the 2026 AFC U23 Asian Cup qualifiers and the Asian zone World Cup qualifiers. Among the penalized associations is the Football Association of Malaysia.

Specifically, both the Malaysian and Mongolian Football Associations were fined $1,000 each for starting the second half 1 minute and 32 seconds late in the U23 Malaysia vs U23 Mongolia match held in Thailand as part of the 2026 AFC U23 Asian Cup qualifiers.

However, this is not the sanction the public was anticipating. Everyone is still waiting to see how the AFC will punish Malaysia for fielding illegally naturalized players in their 4-0 victory against Vietnam in the 2027 Asian Cup qualifiers last June. A forfeit loss of 0-3 is widely discussed.

In the early hours of October 7, FIFA released evidence showing Malaysia forged documents in the original files of seven naturalized players, none of whom have parents born in Malaysia as required. FIFA’s fines and suspensions will remain in place. Whether Malaysia will be handed a forfeit loss or disqualified from the 2027 Asian Cup qualifiers will be decided by the AFC.

Returning to AFC’s sanctions, the Football Association of Thailand, as hosts of the 2026 AFC U23 Asian Cup qualifiers, was fined $33,000 for organizational failures during the U23 Malaysia vs U23 Lebanon match, including failing to have two ambulances ready 90 minutes before kickoff and not properly preparing or equipping the medical room on match day.

The Uzbekistan Football Association faced a heavy fine of $300,000 for serious breaches in organizing the Uzbekistan vs Qatar World Cup 2026 qualifier. Violations included holding a closing ceremony without AFC approval and failing to protect the rights of AFC's partners and commercial stakeholders, severely infringing on the Federation’s interests.