Fifa accused Malaysia of falsifying citizenship papers for seven foreign-born footballers.
The governing body fined and suspended the players in September and published a report on Monday explaining its decision.
Fifa said the Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) forged birth certificates to claim the players’ grandparents were Malaysian.
Fifa called this manipulation “pure and simple, a form of cheating.”
FAM responded that errors were administrative and said it would appeal the penalties, insisting the players are legitimate citizens.
“Grandfather Rule” and Investigation Findings
Fifa allows foreign-born players to represent countries where their parents or grandparents were born to prevent teams from importing talent.
Investigators reviewed eligibility after Malaysia beat Vietnam 4-0 in June.
In September, Fifa suspended the seven players for one year and fined them 2,000 Swiss francs ($2,500; £1,870).
FAM also must pay 350,000 Swiss francs ($440,000; £330,000).
Fifa examined original birth certificates of the players’ grandparents, which showed they were born in countries such as Argentina and Spain.
Players involved include Spanish-born Gabriel Felipe Arrocha, Facundo Tomas Garces, Jon Irazabal Iraurgui; Argentinian-born Rodrigo Julian Holgado, Imanol Javier Machuca; Dutch-born Hector Alejandro Hevel Serrano; Brazilian-born Joao Vitor Brandao Figueiredo.
Fallout and Upcoming Matches
Malaysia’s sports minister, Hannah Yeoh, said Fifa’s findings damaged the nation’s reputation.
She added that the ministry will wait for FAM’s appeal before issuing an official response.
Yeoh acknowledged local fans’ anger and demand for improvements in national football.
Malaysia will face Laos in an Asian Cup qualifier this week, fielding a much-changed team without the sanctioned players.
Southeast Asian countries have increasingly recruited naturalised players to strengthen their squads, following Indonesia’s model.
