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The Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) has announced it will contest FIFA's decision to penalize the organization for supposedly forging the citizenship documents of seven overseas-born players, who have now been banned from playing for the national team for 12 months.

The Global Football Body's Claims and Penalties

In the ninth month, FIFA levied a penalty of over four hundred thousand dollars on FAM and banned the players after finding that their grandparents were not Malaysian by birth as stated, but instead in Argentina, the Brazilian nation, the Netherlands and the Iberian nation. The global football authority reiterated its assertions about falsified documentation in a disciplinary committee report released on Monday.

Each of the players – who all took part in Malaysia's 4-0 win over Vietnam in the qualifying match for the 2027 Asian Cup this June – was also fined $2,500.

The accused group includes Spanish-born Gabriel Felipe Arrocha, Facundo Tomas Garces and Jon Irazabal Iraurgui, Argentinian-born Rodrigo Julian Holgado and Imanol Javier Machuca, as well as Serrano who was born in the Holland, and Joao Vitor Brandao Figueiredo who was born the South American country.

The Governing Body's Position on Forgery

"Forgery represents, pure and simple, a form of dishonesty," stated FIFA in its report.

"Forging documents undermines the heart of the fundamental principles of the sport, not only those regulating a athlete's qualification to represent a national team, but also the essential values of a clean sport and the principle of fair play," added Jorge Palacio, vice-chair of FIFA's ethics panel.

FAM's Response and Appeal Plan

The international body's document states that the Malaysian association admitted it "was contacted by external agencies regarding the players’ heritage and did not attempt to personally confirm the validity of the papers."

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

The organization also mentioned it was "managed to acquire the authentic papers easily," which revealed a "lack of proper diligence" by the Malaysian body.

The Football Association of Malaysia responded to the global body's allegations in a statement on Tuesday, asserting the inconsistencies were the result of an "procedural mistake" and the individuals are "rightful citizens of Malaysia."

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

The governing body will submit an formal challenge of the international body's decision, using authentic papers that have been certified by the Malaysian government.

Regional Background and Political Reactions

South-east Asian countries have recently pursued hiring campaigns for foreign-born athletes, inspired by Indonesia's strategy of recruiting born in the Netherlands players from the overseas community.

The country's sports minister, Hannah Yeoh, said in a statement that "the football association must finish the challenge procedure and that they should not stay quiet but must respond clearly to all revelations made by FIFA."

"Fans are angry, hurt and disappointed," she remarked.

Current Status and Forthcoming Matches

Regardless of uncertainty regarding the national team's composition, the team is now placed 123rd in the Asian Football Confederation standings and is scheduled to compete in Asian Cup qualifiers this month, meeting Laos on the upcoming Thursday.