Malaysia ousted from Asian Cup race after AFC overturns wins
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The seven ineligible players who Malaysia fielded in two of their wins in the Asian Cup qualifiers. Those wins have since been overturned by the AFC into 3-0 forfeits on March 17.
PHOTO: BERITA HARIAN FILE
KUALA LUMPUR – Malaysia’s 2027 Asian Cup hopes are over after the country was hit with 3-0 forfeits in two qualifiers for fielding ineligible players, the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) said on March 17, sending Vietnam through instead.
It was the latest and possibly final chapter of a long-running scandal over seven foreign-born players who used forged documents to play for Malaysia’s national team.
“The defendant fielded ineligible players in the relevant AFC Asian Cup 2027 (third round of qualifying) matches,” the body said.
The verdict leaves Vietnam with an unassailable six-point lead in their qualifying group for the continental showpiece. There is one more round of matches, pitting Vietnam against Malaysia on March 31 in what is now a dead rubber.
Football’s world governing body FIFA in September launched a probe into claims that ineligible players featured in a 4-0 win over Vietnam in a qualifier in June 2025.
That result, and a 2-0 victory against Nepal in March of the same year, have now both been overturned. The AFC’s disciplinary ruling converted both matches into 3-0 forfeits for Malaysia.
FIFA found that the player naturalisations were obtained “using falsified documents” and that none had Malaysian parentage or ancestry.
The organisation suspended the players and slapped more than US$448,000 (S$572,000) in fines on the Football Association of Malaysia (FAM).
The FAM and players then appealed to the Swiss-based Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS).
According to Reuters, the latest AFC verdict meant that the FAM was also handed a US$50,000 fine to be paid within 30 days. The federation did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Malaysia’s The Star newspaper reported that the FAM said it will “formally request the detailed explanation from the AFC before determining their next course of action”.
CAS, meanwhile, had slightly reduced sanctions against the seven players earlier in March.
It ruled that they may resume training with their clubs and take part in football-related activities, though their one-year bans from official matches – backdated to September – remain in force.
CAS also upheld FIFA’s fine on the FAM.
FIFA found that three of the players were originally Argentinian, two Spanish, one Dutch and one Brazilian.
The players are: Hector Hevel, Jon Irazabal, Gabriel Palmero, Facundo Garces, Rodrigo Holgado, Imanol Machuca and Joao Figueiredo. REUTERS, AFP
