Southeast Asia's online community calls for fairness for the Vietnam national team

Southeast Asian media demand justice for the Vietnam national team after FIFA sanctioned Malaysia for falsifying birth certificates of seven naturalized players.

FIFA has upheld the penalty against the Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) after verifying evidence that the country forged birth certificates for seven naturalized players to qualify them for the national team. This announcement came following a thorough FIFA investigation, confirming Malaysia’s fraudulent actions as clear and serious, damaging the reputation of Southeast Asian football.

Currently, the final authority to impose sanctions lies with the Asian Football Confederation (AFC), and the Vietnam national team is still awaiting the official outcome. All parties involved are expected to closely monitor the case’s resolution, including the possibility of FAM appealing to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS).

In this context, Southeast Asian media and football fans have united in calling for fairness for the Vietnam national team. A major regional football fanpage, Seasia Goal, posted:

"Justice for Vietnam! FIFA has released clear evidence proving that Malaysia forged birth certificates for seven naturalized players to make them eligible to play for the national team. This scandal has seriously tarnished the image of Malaysian football and the reputation of Southeast Asian football as a whole.

This is also heartbreaking for Malaysian football fans who have supported and believed in their team all along.

But the ones most affected are the VIETNAM NATIONAL TEAMwho had to compete against those seven ineligible players during their match. The least we can do now is demand a fair outcome for Vietnam, because clearly, Vietnam has been the most wronged and cheated.

FAM has been granted additional time to appeal and challenge FIFA’s evidence, planning to escalate the case to CAS. Both FIFA and AFC are expected to announce the final sanctions soon.

All Southeast Asians stand together demanding justice for Vietnam!"

Seasia Goal’s article has attracted significant attention from the online community and football fans in the region, demonstrating Southeast Asia’s unity in upholding sports fairness. The case is also putting strong pressure on FAM and international football governing bodies to ensure upcoming decisions are transparent, fair, and public.