Malaysian Football Federation should be honest to get leniency

It's time for Malaysian players to face the truth.

While Malaysian public opinion is in turmoil, this move is considered by FAM as an act of "whitewashing" for itself. However, it may be an unwise decision, and such "whitewashing" can easily leave behind "sequelae" that are risky in terms of legality, finance and national image.

The chances of winning the lawsuit are almost zero.

According to the records, the incident arose when FAM sent FIFA birth certificates stating that the grandparents of seven naturalized players were born in Malaysia, a key factor in their naturalization and national team status. However, after investigation, the FIFA Disciplinary Committee (FDC) discovered that the original documents showed they were born in Argentina, the Netherlands and Spain.

FDC asserted that FAM was careless in the authentication process, even deliberately forging or falsifying documents to circumvent the law. FIFA has ironclad evidence in hand, leaving CAS no reason to overturn the ruling.

FAM has 10 days to submit a request to the FAC for a detailed appeal report. After that, they have 21 days to file a complaint. But according to domestic experts, this is a “hopeless gamble”. Datuk Pekan Ramli, a former Malaysian football official, compared FAM to “losing 0-2 to FIFA” after two failed hearings before the FDC and the FIFA Appeals Committee (FAC).

He stressed that FIFA has very clear evidence, while FAM still denies wrongdoing instead of admitting responsibility. Ramli said bluntly: “If there was an opinion poll, I believe the majority of people would consider appealing to CAS a waste of time and money. FAM’s chances of winning are almost zero.”

Is the Malaysian Football Federation trying to get what it wants?

Former striker Safee Sali and former player James Wong also said FAM should stop. According to them, appealing would only be costly and prolong the crisis. “Sometimes you just have to swallow the bitter pill,” Wong advised.

Losing at CAS - the consequences are even worse

CAS is the final court, its judgment is final and binding internationally. If Malaysia continues to sue and still loses, the case is considered completely closed - there is no chance of reversal.

What is more worrying is that FIFA may view the appeal, when the evidence is so clear, as an intentional act of prolonging the case, hindering the execution of the judgment. In that case, FAM will not only face a loss of reputation but also the risk of being subject to stronger disciplinary action from FIFA: not only a deduction of points but also a suspension of membership or a ban from participating in international competitions.

In many similar cases, the federations that have committed violations have avoided suing CAS because they know the risks. Indonesia in 2015 is a typical example: the country's Sports Ministry intervened in the Indonesian Football Association (PSSI), causing FIFA to suspend all international football activities.

Beware that after CAS's ruling, FIFA will have a more severe disciplinary action.

Instead of suing, PSSI chose to negotiate and reform internally to get FIFA to lift the ban after a year. Kenya was also suspended in 2022 because the government dissolved the federation, but they did not appeal but negotiated to restore their membership. Even Bolivia in 2016, when they lost the match for fielding ineligible players, gave up the idea of suing because they knew they could not win and wanted to avoid damaging the national image.

These lessons show that CAS appeals are not only rare but also dangerous if the plaintiff does not have new evidence or a strong legal basis. Losing CAS means confirming violations on a global scale, causing serious damage to the organization's reputation.

Try hard but hard to eat

More worryingly, the Malaysian case is opening up a parallel line of investigation in the country. The Enforcement Agency Integrity Commission (EAIC) has set up a task force headed by its Deputy President Datuk Dr. Prasad Sandosham Abraham to clarify the process of verifying the identity and granting citizenship to the seven naturalized players. At the same time, FAM has also set up an independent committee headed by former Chief Justice Tun Md Raus Sharif to conduct its own review.

It can be seen that the Malaysians themselves also saw the problem and had to investigate themselves. That shows that they know they are wrong. FAM probably understands how wrong they are and how slim their chances of winning at CAS are. However, they declared that filing a lawsuit at CAS is just a desperate reaction to save their honor by reflex.

That is also the reaction of many people who have committed mistakes when they are exposed. It is best to accept the truth and cooperate to correct the mistakes as soon as possible to receive leniency from FIFA.

Source: https://znews.vn/ldbd-malaysia-hay-thanh-khan-de-duoc-khoan-hong-post1600136.html