PETALlNG JAYA: The Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) tonight cited a “technical error” in the documents submitted to field the players in an Asian Cup qualifier, two days after it and seven mixed-heritage players were sanctioned by FIFA.

Noor Azman Rahman, the secretary-general of the country’s football governing body, said the error had been made by one of its personnel.

“FAM takes this matter seriously. However, we would like to emphasise that the mixed-heritage players involved are indeed Malaysian,” he said in a statement.

On Sept 26, FIFA’s disciplinary committee fined FAM 350,000 Swiss francs (RM1.9 million), while each of the seven players were fined 2,000 Swiss francs (RM11,000) in addition to their 12-month suspension.

FIFA said FAM and the seven players were sanctioned for breaching Article 22 of its disciplinary code, which relates to forgery and falsification.

The players involved are Gabriel Felipe Arrocha, Facundo Tomas Garces, Rodrigo Julian Holgado, Imanol Javier Machuca, Joao Vitor Brandao Figueiredo, Jon Irazabal Iraurgui and Hector Alejandro Hevel Serrano.

All seven featured in Malaysia’s Asian Cup 2027 qualifier against Vietnam on June 10, after which FIFA received a complaint regarding the eligibility of several of them.

FAM said it is waiting for FIFA’s secretariat to publish the decision issued by its judicial bodies before appealing the fine and suspension, which have been described as a “major calamity” by a sports analyst.

Yesterday, the Asian Football Confederation said it would review the potential implications stemming from FIFA’s disciplinary actions, as it acknowledged the seriousness of the matter and the possible repercussions on its competitions.