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The Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) has announced it will appeal FIFA's ruling to sanction the body for allegedly forging the nationality papers of seven overseas-born players, who have now been banned from representing the national team for 12 months.

FIFA's Claims and Penalties

In the ninth month, FIFA levied a fine of $438,000 on FAM and banned the players after finding that their ancestors were not Malaysian by birth as claimed, but instead in Argentina, the Brazilian nation, the European country and Spain. The global football governing body restated its assertions about falsified documentation in a disciplinary committee report published on Monday.

Each of the individuals – who all participated in Malaysia's 4-0 victory over the Vietnamese team in the 2027 Asian Cup qualifier this summer – was also penalized $2,500.

The implicated group includes born in Spain Arrocha, Facundo Tomas Garces and Jon Irazabal Iraurgui, Argentinian-born Rodrigo Julian Holgado and Machuca, as well as Hector Alejandro Hevel Serrano who was originated in the Holland, and Figueiredo who was born Brazil.

The Governing Body's Stance on Forgery

"Forgery represents, plain and simple, a form of dishonesty," stated FIFA in its findings.

"The act of forgery undermines the heart of the basic tenets of the sport, not only those governing a player’s eligibility to play for a country's squad, but also the essential values of a fair game and the principle of sportsmanship," added Jorge Palacio, deputy chairperson of FIFA's ethics panel.

FAM's Reply and Challenge Strategy

FIFA's report claims that the Malaysian association conceded it "received inquiries by third parties regarding the athletes' ancestry and failed to independently verify the authenticity of the documentation."

"Initial documentation showed a stark difference to the documentation provided," it said.

FIFA also said it was "able to obtain the authentic papers without hindrance," which highlighted a "failure in due diligence" by the Malaysian body.

FAM responded to FIFA's report in a official communication on the following day, asserting the inconsistencies were the outcome of an "procedural mistake" and the individuals are "legitimate Malaysian citizens."

"Claims that players 'acquired or were aware of fraudulent papers' are unfounded as no concrete proof has been provided so far," the announcement declared.

The association will submit an official appeal of FIFA's ruling, using original documents that have been verified by the Malaysian government.

Southeast Asian Background and Political Reactions

Southeast Asian nations have recently pursued hiring campaigns for foreign-born athletes, inspired by Indonesia's strategy of bringing in born in the Netherlands players from the overseas community.

The country's minister for sports, Hannah Yeoh, stated in a statement that "the football association needs to finish the challenge procedure and that they cannot remain silent but must respond clearly to every disclosure from FIFA."

"Supporters are angry, hurt and disappointed," she remarked.

Current Status and Upcoming Games

Regardless of uncertainty regarding the national team's composition, Malaysia is now ranked 123rd in the Asian Football Confederation standings and is set to compete in qualifying matches for the Asian Cup this month, facing Laos on the upcoming Thursday.