The Court of Arbitration for Sport hearing for FAM and seven players begins, with a decision on FIFA’s forgery sanctions expected within days.
KUALA LUMPUR: The Football Association of Malaysia and seven heritage players face a critical 12-hour period as their appeal hearing begins at the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
Proceedings are scheduled at the CAS headquarters in Lausanne, Switzerland, corresponding to midnight Malaysia time.
Sports law expert Richard Wee indicated the hearing could conclude today, but the official verdict may take several days to be announced.
“Based on my experience, it may take several days or even weeks,” he told Bernama.
Asian Football Confederation Secretary-General Datuk Seri Windsor Paul John echoed this view, noting decisions can be issued within two to three days or later.
FAM confirmed filing the CAS appeal last December after FIFA upheld sanctions for document forgery violations.
In September, FIFA found FAM and players Gabriel Felipe Arrocha, Facundo Garces, Rodrigo Holgado, Imanol Manchuca, Joao Figueiredo, Jon Irazabal and Hector Hevel breached Article 22 of its Disciplinary Code.
Investigations revealed FAM submitted forged documents to verify player eligibility for a match last June.
This resulted in a CHF350,000 (approximately RM1.8 million) fine for FAM and individual fines of CHF2,000 (about RM11,000) plus 12-month suspensions for each player.
The FIFA Appeals Committee rejected appeals from both parties on November 3, upholding the original sanctions.
However, CAS granted a stay of execution on January 27, allowing the players to continue their careers pending the final appeal decision.
