Appeal status against FIFA sanctions remains unclear after deadline

SHAH ALAM – The Football Association of Malaysia’s (FAM) appeal against the FIFA-imposed sanctions remains unclear, as the governing body has yet to issue any official statement on the matter.

Based on Article 61 of the FIFA Disciplinary Code (FDC), FAM was required to declare its written intention to appeal within three days of receiving the official judgment notice on Oct 6.

The deadline for this initial step officially ended last Thursday, but no confirmation has been made on whether the notice was submitted to FIFA.

If the initial step was completed, FAM would have had five more days to send the full appeal documents to FIFA’s Appeals Committee, with yesterday marking that deadline.

The lack of updates has drawn growing concern from supporters demanding transparency on the actual progress of the case.

Previously, FAM said that all documents and evidence concerning the heritage player issue were complete and ready to be sent “immediately.”

However, no further announcements have followed, leading to speculation about the next course of action.

Observers have reminded FAM that the issue is not merely administrative but one that affects Malaysia’s image and credibility in the international football arena.

FIFA’s disciplinary ruling earlier revealed that seven heritage players were suspended for falsifying or altering official documents, namely Joao Figueiredo, Jon Irazabal, Hector Hevel, Gabriel Palmero, Facundo Garces, Rodrigo Holgado and Imanol Machuca.

All seven have been banned from football-related activities for a period set by FIFA.