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The Malaysian Football Association (FAM) has declared it will contest FIFA's decision to sanction the organization for supposedly forging the citizenship documents of multiple foreign-born players, who have now been banned from representing the national team for one year.

The Global Football Body's Allegations and Fines

In the ninth month, FIFA levied a fine of $438,000 on the Malaysian association and banned the footballers after discovering that their grandparents were not born in Malaysia as claimed, but instead in Argentina, the Brazilian nation, the European country and the Iberian nation. The international football authority reiterated its assertions about falsified papers in a disciplinary committee report published on Monday.

Each of the individuals – 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 penalized $2,500.

The accused individuals includes Spanish-born Arrocha, Garces and Iraurgui, born in Argentina Rodrigo Julian Holgado and Machuca, as well as Hector Alejandro Hevel Serrano who was born in the Holland, and Figueiredo who was born Brazil.

FIFA's Position on Forgery

"Document falsification constitutes, pure and simple, a form of dishonesty," said FIFA in its report.

"Forging documents strikes at the heart of the basic tenets of the sport, not only those governing a player’s eligibility to play for a country's squad, but also the essential values of a clean sport and the principle of sportsmanship," added Jorge Palacio, vice-chair of FIFA's disciplinary committee.

FAM's Reply and Appeal Plan

FIFA's report claims that FAM admitted it "received inquiries by third parties regarding the players’ heritage and failed to personally confirm the authenticity of the papers."

"The original birth certificates indicated a sharp contrast to the documentation provided," it noted.

The organization also said it was "managed to acquire the authentic papers easily," which highlighted a "lack of proper diligence" by FAM.

The Football Association of Malaysia reacted to the global body's allegations in a official communication on the following day, maintaining the inconsistencies were the outcome of an "administrative error" and the players are "rightful citizens of Malaysia."

"Allegations that the athletes 'acquired or were knowledgeable of fake documents' are baseless as no solid evidence has been provided to date," the statement declared.

The association will submit an formal challenge of the international body's ruling, using authentic papers that have been verified by the Malaysian government.

Southeast Asian Background and Official Reactions

South-east Asian countries have lately pursued hiring campaigns for naturalised players, inspired by the Indonesian approach of recruiting born in the Netherlands players from the Indonesian diaspora.

Malaysia's minister for sports, the official, stated in a release that "FAM must complete the challenge procedure and that they should not stay quiet but must respond clearly to all revelations from FIFA."

"Supporters are angry, hurt and let down," she remarked.

Current Situation and Forthcoming Matches

Despite uncertainty regarding the squad's lineup, Malaysia is now ranked one hundred twenty-third in the Asian Football Confederation standings and is set to play in Asian Cup qualifiers in the coming weeks, meeting Laos on Thursday.