The Football Association of Malaysia faces a financial crisis following FIFA sanctions
The Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) is facing a financial crisis exceeding 8 million Malaysian ringgit (RM) after FIFA issued penalties related to the use of seven naturalized players accused of falsifying documents.
Malaysia’s national football governing body was fined 350,000 CHF by FIFA and now faces substantial legal expenses to appeal the sanctions at the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS).
Sports analyst Datuk Dr. Pekan Ramli revealed that FAM has spent or will need to spend over 3 million RM on filing fees, lawyer costs, and initial fines.
"Penalties worth millions of ringgit, player suspensions, declining market values, and the threat of Malaysia’s team dropping in rankings have delivered a heavy blow to FAM," Pekan observed.
FIFA confirmed that seven players—Joao Figueiredo, Jon Irazabal, Hector Hevel, Imanol Machuca, Facundo Garces, Rodrigo Holgado, and Gabriel Palmero—were each fined 2,000 CHF and banned from all football-related activities for 12 months.
Legal experts warn that the appeal process at CAS alone could cost FAM more than 1.2 million RM, covering registration fees, lawyer expenses, and expert witness costs.
The financial consequences have also affected the players directly, as their transfer values have dropped to zero.
Unionistas de Salamanca club terminated Gabriel Palmero’s contract, while Machuca, Holgado, and Figueiredo face the risk of losing hundreds of thousands of ringgit in wages.
FIFA also nullified Malaysia’s match results against Cape Verde, Singapore, and Palestine, assigning 0-3 defeats in those games.
As a result, the Malaysian national team dropped five places in the FIFA rankings, falling to 121st worldwide.
Moreover, suspended players may sue FAM to claim compensation for lost earnings, potentially increasing the association’s financial liabilities by several million ringgit.
A sports arbitration lawyer stated that the total costs from fines, appeals, and lost market value could exceed 8 million RM.
According to Datuk Dr. Pekan Ramli, the reputational damage to Malaysian football is even more serious than the financial losses.
"FAM might need one to two decades to rebuild the country’s image internationally," he said.
"Sponsors may pull out, fans could lose trust due to integrity issues, and skepticism will cloud future player naturalization programs."
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