ZURICH (AP) — FIFA has fined the Football Association of Malaysia $438,000 for fake documents filed to naturalize seven foreign-born players for the men’s national team which is now suspended.
The players — Gabriel Felipe Arrocha, Jon Irazábal Iraurgui, Facundo Tomás Garcés, Rodrigo Julián Holgado, Imanol Javier Machuca, João Vitor Brandão Figueiredo and Hector Alejandro Hevel Serrano — were all born abroad and featured in Malaysia's 4-0 win over Vietnam in a 2027 Asian Cup qualifier in June. That win could be overturned.
The players breached regulations concerning forgery and falsification, FIFA said on Friday.
It is the latest case of false registrations in international soccer — often involving players from Brazil — seeking to exploit FIFA rules which do allow some foreign-born players to change their eligibility.
The FAM submitted eligibility inquiries to FIFA, and in doing so “used doctored documentation to be able to field the above players,” the governing body said.
Each player was suspended for 12 months and fined 2,000 Swiss francs ($2,510). The FAM was fined 350,000 Swiss francs ($438,000).
The players’ eligibility to represent Malaysia will also be investigated, FIFA added.
Vietnamese media reported its national team will be awarded a 3-0 win for the June match, but FIFA made no comment.
Malaysia leads Asia Group F in qualifying with six points from two games, three clear of Vietnam in second. Only the group winner advances to the tournament, with four matches remaining.
Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
(0) comments
Welcome to the discussion.
Log In
Keep the discussion civilized. Absolutely NO personal attacks or insults directed toward writers, nor others who make comments.
Keep it clean. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd, racist or sexually-oriented language.
Don't threaten. Threats of harming another person will not be tolerated.
Be truthful. Don't knowingly lie about anyone or anything.
Be proactive. Use the 'Report' link on each comment to let us know of abusive posts.
PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK.
Anyone violating these rules will be issued a warning. After the warning, comment privileges can be revoked.