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The Malaysian Football Association (FAM) has declared it will appeal FIFA's decision to sanction the organization for allegedly forging the citizenship documents of multiple foreign-born players, who have now been banned from playing for the national team for 12 months.

FIFA's Allegations and Fines

In September, FIFA levied a fine of $438,000 on FAM and suspended the footballers after discovering that their ancestors were not Malaysian by birth as claimed, but rather in Argentina, the Brazilian nation, the European country and the Iberian nation. The global football authority restated its claims about falsified papers in a official investigation report released on the start of the week.

Each of the players – who all took part in Malaysia's four-nil win over the Vietnamese team in the 2027 Asian Cup qualifier this summer – was also fined $2,500.

The accused individuals includes Spanish-born Gabriel Felipe Arrocha, Facundo Tomas Garces and Jon Irazabal Iraurgui, born in Argentina Holgado and Machuca, as well as Serrano who was originated in the Holland, and Figueiredo who was born Brazil.

FIFA's Stance on Forgery

"Forgery constitutes, plain and simple, a type of cheating," stated FIFA in its report.

"The act of forgery undermines the heart of the basic tenets of the sport, not only those governing a player’s eligibility to play for a national team, but also the core ethics of a clean sport and the concept of fair play," commented Jorge Palacio, deputy chairperson of FIFA's ethics panel.

FAM's Reply and Appeal Plan

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

"Initial documentation indicated a sharp contrast to the submitted papers," it said.

FIFA also said it was "managed to acquire the relevant original documents easily," which highlighted a "lack of proper diligence" by FAM.

The Football Association of Malaysia reacted to FIFA's allegations in a official communication on Tuesday, maintaining the discrepancies were the result of an "procedural mistake" and the players are "legitimate Malaysian citizens."

"Allegations that the athletes 'obtained or were aware of fake documents' are baseless as no solid evidence has been provided so far," the announcement said.

The association will submit an official appeal of the international body's decision, using authentic papers that have been verified by the national authorities.

Regional Context and Political Responses

Southeast Asian countries have lately pursued recruitment drives for foreign-born athletes, modelled after the Indonesian approach of recruiting Dutch-born players from the overseas community.

Malaysia's minister for sports, Hannah Yeoh, stated in a statement that "FAM must finish the appeal process and that they should not stay quiet but have to answer plainly to every disclosure made by the global authority."

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

Current Status and Upcoming Matches

Regardless of uncertainty surrounding the national team's lineup, the team is now ranked one hundred twenty-third in the Asian Football Confederation standings and is scheduled to compete in qualifying matches for the Asian Cup this month, facing the Laotian team on the upcoming Thursday.