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The Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) has declared it will appeal FIFA's decision to penalize the body for allegedly forging the citizenship documents of multiple foreign-born players, who have now been banned from playing for the national team for one year.

The Global Football Body's Claims and Fines

In the ninth month, FIFA levied a penalty of $438,000 on FAM and suspended the players after discovering that their ancestors were not Malaysian by birth as claimed, but instead in Argentina, the Brazilian nation, the Netherlands and Spain. The global football authority restated its assertions about doctored documentation in a disciplinary committee report released on Monday.

Each of the players – who all participated in Malaysia's four-nil win over Vietnam in the 2027 Asian Cup qualifier this summer – was also fined $2,500.

The implicated individuals includes born in Spain Gabriel Felipe Arrocha, Garces and Iraurgui, Argentinian-born Rodrigo Julian Holgado and Machuca, as well as Hector Alejandro Hevel Serrano who was originated in the Holland, and Figueiredo who was hails from the South American country.

FIFA's Position on Document Falsification

"Document falsification represents, plain and simple, a form of dishonesty," said FIFA in its report.

"Forging documents undermines the very core of the fundamental principles of the sport, not only those governing a athlete's qualification to represent a country's squad, but also the essential values of a clean sport and the principle of fair play," commented a senior official, deputy chairperson of FIFA's disciplinary committee.

The Association's Reply and Challenge Strategy

The international body's report states that the Malaysian association admitted it "received inquiries by third parties regarding the players’ heritage and did not attempt to personally confirm the authenticity of the documentation."

"The original birth certificates indicated a stark difference to the submitted papers," it said.

The organization also said it was "able to obtain the relevant original documents without hindrance," which revealed a "failure in due diligence" by FAM.

FAM responded to FIFA's allegations in a official communication on Tuesday, maintaining the inconsistencies were the outcome of an "administrative error" and the players are "rightful citizens of Malaysia."

"Claims that players 'acquired or were knowledgeable of fake documents' are baseless as no concrete proof has been presented so far," the statement said.

The association will present an formal challenge of FIFA's decision, using authentic papers that have been verified by the Malaysian government.

Southeast Asian Background and Official Responses

South-east Asian nations have lately engaged in recruitment drives for naturalised players, modelled after the Indonesian approach of bringing in born in the Netherlands players from the Indonesian diaspora.

The country's sports minister, Hannah Yeoh, said in a release that "the football association needs to complete the challenge procedure and that they should not stay quiet but must respond clearly to every disclosure from FIFA."

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

Current Status and Upcoming Matches

Despite uncertainty surrounding the national team's lineup, Malaysia is now ranked one hundred twenty-third in FIFA's AFC ranking and is scheduled to play in Asian Cup qualifiers this month, meeting Laos on Thursday.