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The Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) has declared it will contest FIFA's ruling to penalize the body for allegedly falsifying the citizenship documents of seven foreign-born players, who have now been suspended from representing the country for one year.

The Global Football Body's Allegations and Fines

In the ninth month, FIFA imposed a fine of $438,000 on FAM and banned the players after finding that their grandparents were not Malaysian by birth as claimed, but instead in the South American nation, the Brazilian nation, the Netherlands and Spain. The international football authority restated its assertions about doctored documentation in a official investigation report published on Monday.

Each of the individuals – who all participated in Malaysia's four-nil win over Vietnam in the 2027 Asian Cup qualifier this summer – was also penalized $2,500.

The implicated group includes Spanish-born Arrocha, Garces and Jon Irazabal Iraurgui, born in Argentina Holgado and Imanol Javier Machuca, as well as Serrano who was originated in the Holland, and Joao Vitor Brandao Figueiredo who was hails from the South American country.

The Governing Body's Position on Forgery

"Forgery represents, plain and simple, a form of dishonesty," said FIFA in its findings.

"Forging documents undermines the very core of the basic tenets of the sport, not only those regulating a athlete's qualification to play for a country's squad, but also the core ethics of a fair game and the concept of sportsmanship," commented a senior official, vice-chair of FIFA's ethics panel.

FAM's Reply and Challenge Strategy

FIFA's report claims that the Malaysian association conceded it "received inquiries by external agencies regarding the athletes' ancestry and failed to independently verify the authenticity of the papers."

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

The organization also said it was "able to obtain the relevant original documents without hindrance," which revealed a "failure in due diligence" by the Malaysian body.

The Football Association of Malaysia reacted to FIFA's allegations in a statement on the following day, maintaining the discrepancies were the outcome of an "administrative error" and the individuals are "rightful citizens of Malaysia."

"Allegations that players 'obtained or were knowledgeable of fraudulent papers' are unfounded as no concrete proof has been provided so far," the announcement declared.

The governing body will submit an official appeal of FIFA's decision, using authentic papers that have been certified by the national authorities.

Regional Context and Political Reactions

South-east Asian nations have recently pursued recruitment drives for foreign-born athletes, inspired by the Indonesian approach of recruiting Dutch-born footballers from the Indonesian diaspora.

The country's minister for sports, the official, said in a statement that "the football association must complete the challenge procedure and that they cannot remain silent but have to answer plainly to all revelations from FIFA."

"Supporters are upset, disappointed and disappointed," she remarked.

Current Situation and Upcoming Games

Regardless of uncertainty regarding the national team's lineup, the team is now ranked one hundred twenty-third in the Asian Football Confederation standings and is set to play in qualifying matches for the Asian Cup in the coming weeks, meeting the Laotian team on Thursday.