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The Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) has announced it will appeal FIFA's decision to penalize the organization for allegedly forging the nationality papers of multiple foreign-born players, who have now been banned from playing for the country for 12 months.

FIFA's Allegations and Fines

In the ninth month, FIFA imposed a fine of over four hundred thousand dollars on the Malaysian association and banned the players after discovering that their grandparents were not Malaysian by birth as stated, but rather in the South American nation, Brazil, the Netherlands and the Iberian nation. The global football governing body reiterated its claims about falsified documentation in a disciplinary committee report published on the start of the week.

Each of the players – who all participated in Malaysia's four-nil win over the Vietnamese team in the 2027 Asian Cup qualifier this June – was also fined $2,500.

The implicated group includes Spanish-born Gabriel Felipe Arrocha, Garces and Iraurgui, Argentinian-born Rodrigo Julian Holgado and Machuca, as well as Hector Alejandro Hevel Serrano who was originated in the Netherlands, and Joao Vitor Brandao Figueiredo who was born Brazil.

FIFA's Stance on Document Falsification

"Forgery constitutes, pure and simple, a type of cheating," stated FIFA in its report.

"Forging documents strikes at the heart of the fundamental principles of football, not only those regulating a athlete's qualification to play for a national team, but also the essential values of a fair game and the concept of sportsmanship," added Jorge Palacio, vice-chair of FIFA's disciplinary committee.

FAM's Reply and Appeal Plan

The international body's document states that FAM admitted it "was contacted by third parties regarding the players’ heritage and did not attempt to independently verify the validity of the papers."

"The original birth certificates indicated a sharp contrast to the documentation provided," it noted.

FIFA also mentioned it was "able to obtain the relevant original documents easily," which highlighted a "lack of proper diligence" by the Malaysian body.

FAM responded to the global body's report in a statement on Tuesday, asserting the discrepancies were the result of an "administrative error" and the individuals are "legitimate Malaysian citizens."

"Allegations that players 'obtained or were knowledgeable of fraudulent papers' are baseless as no solid evidence has been presented to date," the announcement said.

The governing body will submit an official appeal of the international body's ruling, using authentic papers that have been verified by the Malaysian government.

Regional Background and Official Responses

South-east Asian nations have recently engaged in recruitment drives for naturalised players, inspired by Indonesia's strategy of bringing in born in the Netherlands footballers from the Indonesian diaspora.

The country's minister for sports, Hannah Yeoh, said in a statement that "FAM needs to finish the challenge procedure and that they should not stay quiet but have to answer plainly to every disclosure made by FIFA."

"Fans are angry, disappointed and disappointed," she added.

Current Situation and Forthcoming Matches

Despite uncertainty regarding the national team's composition, the team is now placed one hundred twenty-third in the Asian Football Confederation standings and is scheduled to play in qualifying matches for the Asian Cup this month, facing Laos on Thursday.