How FIFA unveiled falsified documents of Malaysia naturalized players

According to FIFA’s 19-page disciplinary report released on Monday, the organization took just over two months, from receiving a complaint on June 11 to opening proceedings on Aug. 22, to verify the birthplace of the naturalized players or their grandparents.

FIFA Disciplinary Committee (FDC) emphasized in the report that it obtained the original documents "without any problem," implying that the Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) did not carry out the necessary level of checking them. FIFA noted that FAM had previously been contacted by external organizations questioning the players’ origins, but failed to verify the authenticity of the submitted documents, showing either a lack of care or intention.

FIFA’s ability to uncover the truth was aided by its extensive global player data system. Since 2010, FIFA has operated the Transfer Matching System (TMS), a platform that stores detailed information on player registrations, contracts, nationalities and transfer histories.

In 2022, the federation launched the FIFA Clearing House (FCH), which automates financial transactions between clubs while ensuring transparency and preventing cheating in the transfer system.

Together, TMS and FCH connect directly with member football federations to strengthen transparency and stability in the system.

Additionally, FIFA can access the Electronic Player Passport (EPP) system, which tracks player registrations from age 12 across all federations. This provides the organization with detailed information of a player’s eligibility in real time, helping to spot inconsistencies in the nationality profile or registration.

However, the falsified documents in Malaysia’s case were not directly linked to TMS or FCH. Verification of grandparents’ birthplaces required traditional administrative and diplomatic checks instead of using the transfer data system.

FIFA likely sent formal verification requests through national football federations or embassies to civil registration authorities in Argentina, Spain, Brazil and the Netherlands.

Since most of these countries have digitized civil records, FIFA received certified copies of the original birth certificates quickly.

These copies, stamped and signed by official agencies, showed that the grandparents of the seven players were born there instead of Malaysia, contradicting the documents FAM had provided.

FIFA president Gianni Infantino (L), South American Football Confederation president Alejandro Dominguez (C) and Argentine Football Association president Claudio Tapia at a conference in Buenos Aires, Argentina on April 12, 2018. Photo by AP

The report said three document sets were compared: the versions submitted by FAM, the copies reissued by Malaysia’s National Registration Department (NRD) and the original certificates obtained from foreign civil authorities.

The profile of all seven players showed inconsistencies in the place of birth. NRD admitted it had never received the original birth certifications and had relied on secondary information provided by the players’ families to issue the copies. These copies sent by FAM to FIFA were not directly authenticated by the civil registry authorities of the countries of origin.

The FDC concluded that FAM could have easily obtained the originals if it had followed proper procedures. FIFA’s swift access to the documents, the report said, was proof that FAM and the players failed to verify their records or ignored the differences intentionally.

If FAM had genuinely wanted to confirm the players’ origin, FIFA noted, they could have sought help from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs or Malaysian embassies in the relevant countries. However, the FAM’s submitted files contained no evidence that such steps were taken.

After two months of investigation, FIFA’s findings ultimately verified that the documents of FAM were falsified or fake. Therefore, on Sept. 26, FDC fined FAM 350,000 Swiss francs (US$436,234) and seven players 2,000 francs each. They are also banned from all football activities for 12 months. This group of players includes Hector Hevel, Gabriel Palmero, Facundo Garces, Rodrigo Holgado, Imanol Machuca, Joao Figueireido and Jon Irazabal.

FIFA said that falsifying documents for foreign players to play for a country is cheating and cannot be tolerated in any form, as these seven players "significantly influenced the outcome of the match". It said the one-year suspension is justified.