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The Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) has declared it will contest FIFA's ruling to sanction the body for supposedly falsifying the nationality papers of multiple foreign-born players, who have now been suspended from representing the country for 12 months.

The Global Football Body's Allegations and Fines

In the ninth month, FIFA imposed a fine of $438,000 on FAM and banned the footballers after discovering that their grandparents were not Malaysian by birth as claimed, but instead in the South American nation, the Brazilian nation, the European country and the Iberian nation. The global football governing body restated its assertions about falsified documentation in a official investigation report released on the start of the week.

Each of the players – who all took part in Malaysia's four-nil victory over Vietnam in the qualifying match for the 2027 Asian Cup this summer – was also penalized $2,500.

The accused group includes Spanish-born Arrocha, Facundo Tomas Garces and Iraurgui, Argentinian-born Rodrigo Julian Holgado and Machuca, as well as Hector Alejandro Hevel Serrano who was originated in the Netherlands, and Figueiredo who was hails from the South American country.

FIFA's Position on Document Falsification

"Document falsification constitutes, plain and simple, a type of dishonesty," said FIFA in its findings.

"Forging documents strikes at the heart of the fundamental principles of football, not only those governing a player’s eligibility to represent a country's squad, but also the essential values of a fair game and the concept of sportsmanship," commented a senior official, vice-chair of FIFA's disciplinary committee.

FAM's Reply and Appeal Plan

FIFA's report states that the Malaysian association conceded it "was contacted by third parties regarding the athletes' ancestry and did not attempt to independently verify the validity of the documentation."

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

FIFA also mentioned it was "managed to acquire the authentic papers easily," which revealed a "lack of proper diligence" by FAM.

FAM responded to FIFA's report in a statement on Tuesday, asserting the discrepancies were the outcome of an "administrative error" and the players are "rightful citizens of Malaysia."

"Claims that players 'obtained or were knowledgeable of fraudulent papers' are unfounded as no solid evidence has been provided to date," the statement said.

The association will present an official appeal of the international body's ruling, using original documents that have been certified by the national authorities.

Southeast Asian Context and Political Responses

Southeast Asian countries have recently pursued hiring campaigns for naturalised players, inspired by the Indonesian approach of bringing in Dutch-born footballers from the overseas community.

Malaysia's sports minister, Hannah Yeoh, said in a release that "the football association needs to complete the appeal process and that they cannot remain silent but must respond clearly to every disclosure from FIFA."

"Fans are upset, disappointed and disappointed," she remarked.

Current Situation and Upcoming Matches

Regardless of doubt surrounding the national team's lineup, the team is now placed one hundred twenty-third in the Asian Football Confederation standings and is set to play in Asian Cup qualifiers in the coming weeks, facing the Laotian team on Thursday.