FAM suspends naturalised player recruitment for Harimau Malaya, Sports Ministry says

KUALA LUMPUR, March 3 – The Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) has temporarily halted its national-level player naturalisation programme, the Youth and Sports Ministry said yesterday.

In a Parliamentary written reply to Chow Yu Hu (PH-Raub), the ministry said however football clubs under the Malaysia Football League (MFL) may continue the process according to government guidelines.

“Generally, the criteria for selecting a naturalised player include having played in the national league for at least five consecutive years under the Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) since the age of 18 and not having represented another country at the senior level,” the ministry said.

It added that the conditions and regulations governing the naturalisation of individuals fall under the jurisdiction of the Home Ministry and are subject to existing laws and policies.

In January, the FAM was reported saying it is awaiting the green light from the government to secure citizenship for four new heritage players for Harimau Malaya.

Johor Regent Tunku Mahkota Ismail Ibrahim had previously announced that six to seven heritage players had been identified to represent Malaysia.

He then said he hoped that Putrajaya would facilitate the process of obtaining Malaysian passports so that the players could feature for Harimau Malaya in the 2027 Asian Cup qualifiers starting this month.

The national team, under the guidance of new head coach Peter Cklamovski, will kick off their 2027 Asian Cup Qualifiers campaign with their first Group F match against Nepal on March 25.

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