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The Malaysian Football Association (FAM) has declared it will appeal FIFA's ruling to sanction the organization for allegedly forging the nationality papers of seven foreign-born players, who have now been suspended from representing the national team for one year.

FIFA's Claims and Fines

In the ninth month, FIFA imposed a penalty of $438,000 on the Malaysian association and suspended the footballers after finding that their ancestors were not Malaysian by birth as stated, but rather in Argentina, the Brazilian nation, the Netherlands and the Iberian nation. The global football authority reiterated its claims about doctored papers in a disciplinary committee report released on Monday.

Each of the individuals – who all participated in Malaysia's 4-0 win over the Vietnamese team in the 2027 Asian Cup qualifier this June – was also fined twenty-five hundred dollars.

The implicated individuals includes Spanish-born Arrocha, Facundo Tomas Garces and Jon Irazabal Iraurgui, born in Argentina Rodrigo Julian Holgado and Machuca, as well as Serrano who was originated in the Holland, and Figueiredo who was hails from Brazil.

FIFA's Stance on Forgery

"Forgery represents, pure and simple, a form of dishonesty," stated FIFA in its findings.

"Forging documents undermines the heart of the fundamental principles of the sport, not only those governing a player’s eligibility to represent a country's squad, but also the essential values of a clean sport and the concept of fair play," added a senior official, vice-chair of FIFA's ethics panel.

FAM's Response and Challenge Strategy

The international body's report claims that the Malaysian association conceded it "received inquiries by external agencies regarding the athletes' ancestry and failed to independently verify the validity of the documentation."

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

The organization also said it was "managed to acquire the authentic papers easily," which revealed a "lack of proper diligence" by the Malaysian body.

FAM responded to the global body's allegations in a official communication on Tuesday, maintaining the inconsistencies were the result of an "procedural mistake" and the players are "legitimate Malaysian citizens."

"Allegations that the athletes 'obtained or were knowledgeable of fake documents' are unfounded as no concrete proof has been provided so far," the announcement said.

The governing body will present an formal challenge of the international body's ruling, using authentic papers that have been verified by the national authorities.

Southeast Asian Background and Political Reactions

South-east Asian countries have recently pursued recruitment drives for naturalised players, inspired by Indonesia's strategy of bringing in born in the Netherlands players from the Indonesian diaspora.

Malaysia's minister for sports, Hannah Yeoh, stated in a release that "FAM must complete the appeal process and that they should not stay quiet but must respond clearly to all revelations made by FIFA."

"Fans are upset, disappointed and let down," she remarked.

Present Status and Upcoming Games

Regardless of doubt surrounding the squad's composition, Malaysia is now placed 123rd in the Asian Football Confederation standings and is set to compete in Asian Cup qualifiers this month, facing the Laotian team on the upcoming Thursday.