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The Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) has announced it will appeal FIFA's decision to sanction the body for supposedly forging the citizenship documents of seven overseas-born players, who have now been banned from representing the national team for 12 months.

FIFA's Allegations and Penalties

In the ninth month, FIFA levied a penalty of over four hundred thousand dollars on FAM and banned the players after discovering that their ancestors were not born in Malaysia as claimed, but rather in the South American nation, the Brazilian nation, the Netherlands and the Iberian nation. The international football authority reiterated its claims about falsified papers in a official investigation report published on Monday.

Each of the players – who all participated in Malaysia's 4-0 victory over the Vietnamese team in the qualifying match for the 2027 Asian Cup this summer – was also fined twenty-five hundred dollars.

The implicated individuals includes born in Spain Gabriel Felipe Arrocha, Garces and Jon Irazabal Iraurgui, born in Argentina Holgado and Machuca, as well as Hector Alejandro Hevel Serrano who was born in the Netherlands, and Joao Vitor Brandao Figueiredo who was hails from Brazil.

The Governing Body's Stance on Document Falsification

"Document falsification represents, pure and simple, a type of cheating," said FIFA in its findings.

"The act of forgery strikes at the very core of the basic tenets of the sport, not only those governing a athlete's qualification to represent a national team, but also the essential values of a clean sport and the principle of sportsmanship," commented Jorge Palacio, vice-chair of FIFA's ethics panel.

The Association's Reply and Challenge Strategy

FIFA's report states that the Malaysian association conceded it "was contacted by external agencies regarding the players’ heritage and did not attempt to personally confirm the validity of the papers."

"Initial documentation showed a stark difference to the documentation provided," it said.

FIFA also said it was "able to obtain the authentic papers without hindrance," which highlighted a "lack of proper diligence" by FAM.

The Football Association of Malaysia responded to the global body's allegations in a official communication on Tuesday, asserting the discrepancies were the outcome of an "administrative error" and the individuals are "rightful citizens of Malaysia."

"Claims that the athletes 'obtained or were knowledgeable of fake documents' are unfounded as no solid evidence 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 Background and Official Reactions

South-east Asian countries have recently engaged in hiring campaigns for foreign-born athletes, modelled after the Indonesian approach of bringing in Dutch-born footballers from the Indonesian diaspora.

The country's sports minister, the official, stated in a release that "FAM needs to complete the appeal process and that they should not stay quiet but have to answer plainly to all revelations made by the global authority."

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

Present Situation and Upcoming Games

Regardless of uncertainty surrounding the national team's lineup, Malaysia is now placed 123rd in the Asian Football Confederation standings and is scheduled to compete in Asian Cup qualifiers in the coming weeks, facing the Laotian team on Thursday.