Malaysian football speaks out after crisis, wants to stabilize national team

(Dan Tri) - For the first time after the President of the Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) Datuk Joehari Ayub announced his withdrawal, the organization has spoken out, calling on Malaysian football to continue moving forward.

Speaking at a press conference yesterday (August 29) of FAM, Acting President of the Football Association of Malaysia Datuk Yusoff Mahadi said: “The decision to resign is Datuk Joehari Ayub’s personal choice. I cannot answer why Datuk Joehari Ayub made the above choice.”

“I can only confirm that there is nothing unusual regarding Malaysian football, regarding the resignation of Datuk Joehari Ayub,” FAM Acting President Datuk Yusoff Mahadi added.

FAM Acting President Datuk Yusoff Mahadi (center) promises that Malaysian football is still fine (Photo: NST).

The resignation of former FAM President Datuk Joehari Ayub just six months after taking office has greatly affected the morale of Malaysian football. At the same time, Malaysian football fans are worried that their national team will be affected and weakened in the 2027 Asian Cup qualifiers.

Faced with the current situation, FAM Acting President Datuk Yusoff Mahadi reassured the Malaysian football community and fans: “Everything is normal. I call on the Malaysian football community to move forward.”

“We should not be afraid. We will continue what was left unfinished under former president Datuk Joehari Ayub. We have to accept the reality of what is happening,” said FAM Acting President Datuk Yusoff Mahadi.

The Malaysian team (in yellow shirts) may be mentally affected after FAM faced a crisis (Photo: CNN Indonesia).

Also according to the Acting President of the Football Association of Malaysia, Datuk Yusoff Mahadi, he denied any outside interference in the management of FAM, as well as interference in the position of former President Datuk Joehari Ayub.

As planned, Acting President Datuk Yusoff Mahadi will temporarily run FAM until next year. The FAM Congress will take place in March 2026.

In the meantime, FAM's mission is to maintain Malaysia's top spot in the 2027 Asian Cup third qualifying round.

In the Asian qualifiers, Malaysia's biggest rival is Vietnam. The group also includes Laos and Nepal.

Source: https://dantri.com.vn/the-thao/bong-da-malaysia-len-tieng-sau-khung-hoang-muon-on-dinh-tuyen-quoc-gia-20250830133501426.htm