Malaysian Football Faces Financial Crisis Due to Lawsuit Against FIFA

The Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) is undergoing a financial crisis after FIFA imposed penalties concerning seven unlawfully naturalized players.

The Malaysian football governing body was fined 350,000 Swiss francs (CHF), approximately 1.8 million Ringgit, and now faces substantial legal expenses to appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS). Sports critic Datuk Dr. Pekan Ramli stated that FAM has spent or will need to spend over 3 million Ringgit on filing fees, lawyer fees, and the initial fine.

“The multi-million Ringgit fines, player suspensions, market value decline, and the risk of Malaysia’s national team ranking dropping have dealt a severe blow to FAM,” Pekan commented.

FIFA confirmed that seven illegally naturalized Malaysian players will be fined 2,000 CHF each and banned from all football activities for 12 months. Legal experts warn that the appeal process at CAS alone could cost FAM more than 1.2 million Ringgit, including registration fees, attorney fees, and expert witness expenses.

The financial consequences have also affected the players themselves, as their transfer values have dropped to zero. Unionistas de Salamanca club terminated Palmero’s contract, while Machuca, Holgado, and Figueiredo face potential losses amounting to hundreds of thousands of Ringgit in wages.

FIFA also annulled the results of Harimau Malaya’s matches against Cape Verde, Singapore, and Palestine, awarding 0-3 losses in all three games. This decision caused Malaysia to fall five places to 121st in the FIFA rankings.

Additionally, suspended players might sue FAM to claim compensation for lost income, which could further increase the association’s financial liabilities by millions of Ringgit. A sports arbitration lawyer indicated that total costs from fines, appeals, and loss of market value could exceed 8 million Ringgit (about 52 billion VND).

According to Pekan, the intangible damage to the reputation of Malaysian football is even harder to repair than the financial losses.

“FAM may require one to two decades to restore the country’s image internationally,” he observed. “Sponsors might withdraw, fan support could decline due to integrity issues, and future naturalization programs will face serious doubts.”