According to a statement on FAM's official website, the decision was made by strong consensus, stemming from a sense of responsibility towards the federation, rather than personal gain or status.

"These resignations aim to protect FAM's reputation, maintain transparency in governance and accountability to the organization, while creating space for FIFA and the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) to independently assess and resolve administrative issues," the statement read. It added that the decision also seeks to enable necessary reforms, uphold public trust, and ensure that the future of Malaysian football is prioritized.

The Malaysian Football Federation headquarters. *Photo: FAM*

The FAM Executive Committee had served for only 11 months of its four-year term. Despite stepping down, the commissioners pledged to continue full cooperation with FIFA, the AFC, and relevant stakeholders, reaffirming their dedication to the long-term interests of national football.

This move comes amid public scrutiny of FAM's internal governance issues, stemming from a case where seven naturalized players were found by the FIFA disciplinary committee to have fraudulent documents, a serious violation of international football principles. The group includes Joao Figueiredo, Rodrigo Holgado, Gabriel Palmero, Imanol Machuca, Facundo Garces, Jon Irazabal, and Hector Hevel.

FIFA initially fined FAM 350,000 Swiss francs (over 11 billion dong). Additionally, each involved player faced a 12-month playing ban and a 2,000 Swiss franc (65 million dong) fine. In December, FIFA further ruled Malaysia would forfeit 0-3 in friendly matches against Cape Verde, Singapore, and Palestine due to the use of these naturalized players. FIFA also imposed a 10,000 Swiss franc fine on FAM.

After two unsuccessful appeals at the FIFA level, FAM appealed to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), its final hope to overturn the situation. Recently, CAS accepted FAM's request, allowing the players to return to club-level competition pending a final decision on FIFA's appeal.

The outcome of the CAS appeal is not the decisive factor in this matter. FIFA retains the right to impose disciplinary measures or suspend FAM based on its own assessment, regardless of the CAS ruling. A suspension of FAM could have severe repercussions for Malaysian football. For example, the national team and clubs might be barred from international competitions, or FIFA's support packages for youth development and women's football could be frozen.

Therefore, the FAM Executive Committee's resignation aims to restore and strengthen internal governance, seeking to regain FIFA's trust. In the coming period, FAM will organize new elections to restructure, reorganize, and implement corrective measures within the federation's operations.

Quang Dung