BREAKING: Malaysia receives the most welcome news in their FIFA appeal

The Football Association of Malaysia unexpectedly has been granted extra time to supplement their appeal documents to CAS.

Today, December 8, is the final deadline for the Football Association of Malaysia to appeal FIFA's sanction to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS). In recent days, there were many reports suggesting that Malaysia was losing interest in appealing FIFA's decision and seemed to accept the punishment from the global football authority.

At the end of last month (November 28), the newspaperBerita Harianreported that they proactively contacted CAS via email to get the latest updates regarding the case. In a reply sent toBH Online, CAS media representative Vanessa Tracey confirmed that the institution has not yet received any appeal from FAM.

However, by the morning of December 8, the Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) confirmed it had filed an appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) against FIFA’s sanctions imposed on the national football governing body and seven illegally naturalized players.

Even more encouraging, FAM has been allowed extra time to add more documents for submission to CAS. In a statement today, acting FAM president Datuk Yusoff Mahadi said the association’s legal team was granted a 10-day extension to prepare and submit all written arguments, with the final deadline set for December 18.

Mr. Yusoff stated:"FAM is committed to handling this process professionally and transparently, respecting all established legal procedures." "Further developments will be announced soon."

FAM’s statement also clarified previous reports last week that CAS spokesperson declared no appeal had been received from Malaysia, which caused public criticism and confusion about whether the association had taken any action.

The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) will still await the final decisions from FIFA and CAS before issuing an official penalty for the Malaysian national team, which fielded these naturalized players during the 2027 Asian Cup qualifiers. Vietnam’s team will have to wait longer to know if they will be awarded a 3-0 win for their 0-4 loss to Malaysia in June 2025. If granted, Vietnam will officially qualify for the 2027 Asian Cup finals.

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