THE Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) and seven players have been sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) Disciplinary Committee for breaching Article 22 of the FIFA Disciplinary Code (FDC) concerning forgery and falsification.
FIFA in a statement today, said FAM was found to have submitted doctored documentation in eligibility enquiries in order to field the players in the third round of the AFC Asian Cup Saudi Arabia 2027 Qualifiers against Vietnam on June 10.
The players involved are Gabriel Felipe Arrocha, Facundo Tomás Garcés, Rodrigo Julián Holgado, Imanol Javier Machuca, João Vitor Brandão Figueiredo, Jon Irazábal Iraurgui and Hector Alejandro Hevel Serrano, reported Bernama.
As a result, FAM has been fined CHF350,000 (Swiss Franc) while each player was fined CHF2,000 (Swiss Franc) and suspended for 12 months from all football-related activities, effective from the date of notification of the decision.
FIFA said the matter of the players’ eligibility to represent Malaysia has been referred to the FIFA Football Tribunal for further consideration.
Both FAM and the players have been notified of the decision and have 10 days to request a motivated decision, which if requested, will be published on legal.fifa.com.
The decision remains subject to a potential appeal before the FIFA Appeal Committee. - September 26, 2025
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