Indonesian media reveals the severe penalty Malaysia is about to receive from the AFC

The recent verdict from the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) concerning the naturalization controversy is placing Malaysian football in a position where it could incur strict sanctions from the Asian Football Confederation (AFC).

Following the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) rejecting the appeal by the Football Association of Malaysia (FAM), regional discourse has extended beyond just discussing the suspensions of seven players. The Superball Indonesia publication has issued significant commentary, likening Malaysia's situation to the "past missteps" of Timor-Leste.

The press from the archipelago nation emphasized: "The AFC has only two feasible penalties for Malaysia, which could include their expulsion from the 2027 Asian Cup qualifiers. This may refer to the sanctions previously imposed by the AFC and FIFA on Timor-Leste in similar cases".

It is worth recalling that Timor-Leste was once expelled from the Asian Cup after falsifying documents for nine foreign-born players. Given the severity of the current case, Malaysia now faces the risk of being "erased" from the regional and international football map for an extended period.

The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) has officially confirmed the incident and stated there will be no cover-up. An AFC press release clarified: "This matter will be forwarded to the AFC's Disciplinary and Ethics Committee. We do not comment on ongoing investigations".

According to analysis by international experts, the potential penalties looming over FAM include:

• Annulment of all winning results in the 2027 Asian Cup qualifiers (resulting in 0-3 losses to Vietnam and Nepal).

• Heavy point deductions or direct elimination from the current qualifying campaign.

• A ban from participating in the qualifying rounds for subsequent Asian Cup editions after 2027.

• Suspension of officials involved in processing the fraudulent documents.

The Superball outlet did not hesitate to criticize FAM's lack of transparency and raised questions about the future of Malaysian football: "Will Malaysia's naturalization program for players be halted entirely? All concerns about the potential ruin of Malaysian football stem from this scandal".

The consequences are not limited to the national team level. The domestic league (MFL) is also reeling from the possibility that the clubs managing these players could face point deductions or have their match results voided. This is seen as a massive psychological blow, capable of paralyzing all of Malaysia's football development efforts for many years to come.

Meanwhile, on the opposite side, the Vietnamese national team is presented with a "golden" opportunity to secure early qualification for the 2027 Asian Cup finals without breaking a sweat.