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The Malaysian Football Association (Malaysia's football governing body) has announced it will appeal FIFA's decision to penalize the organization for supposedly falsifying the nationality papers of multiple foreign-born players, who have now been suspended from playing for the country for 12 months.

FIFA's Claims and Penalties

In September, FIFA imposed a penalty of over four hundred thousand dollars on FAM and suspended the players after discovering that their ancestors were not born in Malaysia as claimed, but instead in the South American nation, Brazil, the Netherlands and Spain. 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 four-nil victory over the Vietnamese team in the 2027 Asian Cup qualifier this summer – was also fined $2,500.

The implicated individuals includes Spanish-born Arrocha, Facundo Tomas Garces and Iraurgui, born in Argentina Holgado and Machuca, as well as Hector Alejandro Hevel Serrano who was originated in the Holland, and Joao Vitor Brandao Figueiredo who was born the South American country.

FIFA's Stance on Forgery

"Forgery represents, pure and simple, a type of cheating," stated FIFA in its report.

"The act of forgery undermines the very core of the basic tenets of football, not only those regulating a player’s eligibility to represent a country's squad, but also the essential values of a fair game and the principle of sportsmanship," added Jorge Palacio, vice-chair of FIFA's disciplinary committee.

FAM's Response and Challenge Strategy

The international body's document states that the Malaysian association admitted it "was contacted by external agencies regarding the athletes' ancestry and failed to personally confirm the authenticity of the documentation."

"The original birth certificates showed a stark difference to the documentation provided," it said.

FIFA also said it was "able to obtain the authentic papers easily," which highlighted a "failure in due diligence" by FAM.

The Football Association of Malaysia reacted to the global body's report in a official communication on the following day, maintaining the discrepancies were the outcome of an "procedural mistake" and the individuals are "rightful citizens of Malaysia."

"Allegations that the athletes 'acquired or were aware of fraudulent papers' are unfounded as no solid evidence has been presented to date," the statement declared.

The association will present an official appeal of the international body's ruling, using authentic papers that have been certified by the Malaysian government.

Southeast Asian Context and Political Responses

South-east Asian nations have lately engaged in recruitment drives for naturalised players, inspired by the Indonesian approach of recruiting Dutch-born footballers from the Indonesian diaspora.

Malaysia's minister for sports, the official, stated in a release that "FAM must finish the appeal process and that they should not stay quiet but have to answer plainly to all revelations from the global authority."

"Fans are angry, disappointed and let down," she added.

Current Situation and Upcoming Matches

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