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The Malaysian Football Association (Malaysia's football governing body) has declared it will contest FIFA's ruling to penalize the organization for allegedly forging the nationality papers of seven foreign-born players, who have now been suspended from playing for the national team for one year.

FIFA's Claims and Fines

In September, FIFA imposed a penalty of $438,000 on FAM and suspended the footballers after finding that their grandparents were not born in Malaysia as claimed, but instead in the South American nation, the Brazilian nation, the Netherlands and the Iberian nation. The international football authority reiterated its claims about doctored papers in a official investigation report released on Monday.

Each of the players – who all took part in Malaysia's 4-0 win over Vietnam in the qualifying match for the 2027 Asian Cup this summer – was also penalized twenty-five hundred dollars.

The accused individuals includes born in Spain Gabriel Felipe Arrocha, Garces and Iraurgui, born in Argentina Holgado and Machuca, as well as Hector Alejandro Hevel Serrano who was born in the Holland, and Figueiredo who was born the South American country.

FIFA's Stance on Forgery

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

"The act of forgery strikes at the very core of the basic tenets of football, not only those governing a player’s eligibility to represent a country's squad, but also the essential values of a clean sport and the principle of fair play," added Jorge Palacio, vice-chair of FIFA's ethics panel.

FAM's Response and Appeal Plan

FIFA's document claims that FAM admitted it "was contacted by third parties regarding the athletes' ancestry and did not attempt to personally confirm the validity of the documentation."

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

FIFA also mentioned it was "managed to acquire the authentic papers easily," which highlighted a "lack of proper diligence" by the Malaysian body.

FAM responded to FIFA's report in a statement on the following day, maintaining the inconsistencies were the result of an "administrative error" and the players are "rightful citizens of Malaysia."

"Allegations that the athletes 'acquired or were aware of fake documents' are baseless as no concrete proof has been provided to date," the announcement declared.

The association will present an formal challenge of the international body's ruling, using authentic papers that have been certified by the national authorities.

Regional Background and Official Reactions

Southeast Asian nations have lately engaged in hiring campaigns for naturalised players, modelled after Indonesia's strategy of recruiting Dutch-born players from the Indonesian diaspora.

Malaysia's minister for sports, the official, said in a statement that "FAM needs to complete the challenge procedure and that they cannot remain silent but must respond clearly to every disclosure made by FIFA."

"Supporters are upset, hurt and let down," she added.

Current Situation and Forthcoming Matches

Regardless of uncertainty surrounding the national team's lineup, Malaysia is now ranked one hundred twenty-third in FIFA's AFC ranking and is set to compete in qualifying matches for the Asian Cup this month, facing Laos on Thursday.