Berita Harian reported AFC secretary-general Windsor John as saying that the investigation involves the licensing process for clubs in the Malaysian League (M-League).

John said violation of club licensing regulations could result in FAM and MFL losing their authority to grant national licences to M-League clubs and lead to no Malaysian representatives being eligible to compete on the Asian stage.

“Once we have gathered all our information, we will make a decision through our committee.

“If there is a violation, there will be penalties. There are regulations in place. It cannot be that one country faces penalties while another does not. There will always be penalties,” he said.

Several M-League clubs have been plagued by unpaid salaries and EPF payment issues, leading many to question how they obtained their licences.

It was previously reported that Kuala Lumpur City FC have not paid its players’ EPF contributions since February 2023, the unpaid sum totalling almost RM719,000.

Sheikh Nasir Sheikh Sharif, the chairman of First Instance Body (FIB), an independent decision-making body appointed by FAM, had previously explained that KL City FC received its licence based on a payment declaration letter issued by EPF.

“However, given that the information given by the club management conflicts with (information on the) veracity of the document raised with FIB, FIB will start its own investigation into the matter promptly,” he said.