NATIONAL team advisor Tunku Ismail Sultan Ibrahim claimed that the action by the International Federation of Association Football (FIFA) in rejecting the appeal of the Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) and seven Harimau Malaya heritage players was not based on the law and was more 'politically motivated'.
According to Tunku Ismail, FIFA continues to punish the players by not using the actual provisions of the law.
“While Article 22 of the FIFA code states that only those who forge or use false documents can be prosecuted and this does not apply to players at all.
“In other words, the punishment imposed is not based on the law and appears to be more ‘politically motivated’ than the real reason.
“Some choose to point fingers, some to make noise, but I want to stand and support the all-out struggle for the players, which will now proceed to the CAS (Court of Arbitration for Sport) an independent body,” he wrote on Instagram.
FAM Acting President, Datuk Mohd Yusoff Mahadi, in a statement last night reported that FIFA has rejected FAM's appeal regarding the alleged forgery of the qualification documents of seven legacy players.
Mohd Yusoff said they will write to the world football governing body to obtain full details and written reasons for the decision before taking the next step, submitting an appeal to the CAS.
"FAM has received the appeal decision from FIFA where our appeal has been rejected," he said via a post on the FAM Facebook page.
On September 26, FAM, along with seven national players, were subject to action by the FIFA Disciplinary Committee after being found to have violated Article 22 of the FIFA Disciplinary Code (FDC) regarding forgery of documents.
FIFA in its statement stated that FAM was found to have submitted forged documents in the matter of validating the eligibility of players to enable them to be fielded in official matches.
The seven players involved are Gabriel Felipe Arrocha, Facundo Tomas Garces, Rodrigo Julian Holgado, Imanol Javier Machuca, Joao Vitor Brandao Figueiredo, Jon Irazabal Iraurgui and Hector Alejandro Hevel Serrano.
In addition, FIFA imposed a fine of CHF350,000 (approximately RM1.8 million) on FAM and suspended seven legacy players for 12 months after allegedly forging qualification documents.
All of them played in the 2027 Asian Cup qualifier against Vietnam on June 10, which later prompted an official complaint to FIFA regarding the qualification status of several of the players.
According to Mohd Yusoff, this is the first time FAM has faced a situation like this and FAM's lawyers and management are very surprised by the decision.
He added that FAM will continue to firmly fight for the rights of the players and the interests of Malaysian football at the international level. – November 4, 2025
