SNAPSHOT | New FAM chief regrets 'heritage' players scandal, vows no repeat; AG to liaise with Nepal on 55 missing M'sians

The Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) has issued an apology to Malaysian football fans following the controversy involving forged documents of seven heritage players that had previously tarnished the national football scene. The apology was made by FAM president Ab Ghani Hassan on behalf of the national football governing body, including its new executive committee, which has recently taken over leadership of FAM.

Ab Ghani emphasized that the national football body must strengthen its procedures for handling player documentation and national team call-ups to prevent similar issues in the future. He pledged his commitment to ensuring such matters do not occur again during his tenure as FAM president. The controversy arose last year when FAM and seven naturalized Malaysian footballers faced penalties from FIFA for submitting falsified birth certificates, claiming their grandfathers were born in Malaysia.

FIFA found that the players, who were actually born in Spain, Argentina, Brazil, and the Netherlands, had used fabricated documents to confirm their eligibility before Malaysia's 2027 Asian Cup qualifier against Vietnam. In addition to a fine of 350,000 Swiss francs (approximately RM1.8 million) and a 12-month suspension, the seven players had their bans partially upheld by the Court of Arbitration for Sport, which ruled that the ban applied only to official matches.