The Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) on Wednesday confirmed that FIFA has overturned the results of three of Malaysia's international matches because the team fielded ineligible players.
The FIFA Disciplinary Committee ruled that three international friendlies against Cape Verde on 29 May, Singapore on 4 September and Palestine on 8 September would be recorded as 3–0 defeats by forfeiture.
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In addition to voiding the results, FIFA also fined FAM 10,000 Swiss francs. The decision is subject to appeal, FIFA said.
The decision follows earlier FIFA sanctions in September, when seven naturalized players were suspended for 12 months, and FAM was fined 350,000 Swiss francs after the world governing body found that false documents were used to establish players' eligibility.
The documents reportedly claimed Malaysian ancestry and were used during an Asian Cup qualifier against Vietnam in June.
FIFA rejected FAM's initial appeal against those sanctions in November, prompting the association to take the case to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS).
“FAM will make a written application to the FIFA Disciplinary Committee to learn the reasons for the decision before considering the next steps to be taken in this matter,” the association said in a statement.
The controversy has sparked a backlash in Malaysia, with fans and parliamentarians demanding accountability within FAM and government agencies involved in granting citizenship to players.
Last month, FAM suspended its general secretary and set up an independent committee to investigate, calling it a “technical error”.
The latest decision came after a FIFA Disciplinary Committee meeting on 12 December, which concluded that FAM had breached FIFA's disciplinary code by fielding ineligible players.
