The Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) is facing a contentious decision: whether to continue its appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) after being found guilty by FIFA of falsifying identity documents for seven players.
FAM officials strategizing for their CAS appealFAM affirms its intent to appeal to CAS to reduce the penalty for 7 illegally naturalized players (Photo: Stadium Astro).
Stadium Astro reported: “This is FAM’s right, and they were quick to exercise it. Within 10 days of the FIFA Appeals Committee rejecting their appeal against the 12-month ban for 7 players, FAM filed a request for a ruling. Subsequently, they have 21 days to take the case to CAS.
FAM still hopes that CAS will reduce the severity of the penalties imposed by FIFA on Gabriel Palmero, Joao Figueiredo, Hector Hevel, Jon Irazabal, Facundo Garces, Imanol Machuca, and Rodrigo Holgado.”
Based on the views of lawyer Serge Vittoz, Stadium Astro also outlined the strategy FAM needs to implement when taking the case to CAS: “To convince the CAS members, FAM needs to wisely implement risk mitigation measures. With the support of lawyer Serge Vittoz, FAM is expected to present a mitigation strategy, demonstrating that the initial penalty was ‘clearly and disproportionately excessive for the offense committed’.”
Lawyer Vittoz is expected to propose the following strategies:
De Novo Review: CAS will conduct a comprehensive review of the facts and law, not merely relying on previous rulings. This allows FAM to present new arguments and evidence.
Argument on Proportionality of Sanction: FAM will argue that FIFA failed to consider specific circumstances that could justify a reduction in the penalty, violating the principle of proportionality.
Provide Context for the Offense: FAM needs to provide detailed explanations and evidence to place the offense in its proper context, thereby minimizing its impact.
Demonstrate Good Faith or Lack of Fault: Presenting evidence of a genuine misunderstanding, administrative error (which has been corrected), or a lack of serious negligence could be strong mitigating factors.
Implement Remedial Measures: FAM can take action against the culpable party, for example, suspending officials such as the Secretary-General or national team management members.
However, Stadium Astro also warned FAM to be cautious in every step of the appeal, as the FIFA Football Tribunal is still reviewing the eligibility of FAM’s players:
“While awaiting this legal process, the FIFA Football Tribunal is expected to convene to discuss the eligibility status of the 7 players involved. To avoid a worse disaster, FAM could contact Tan Sri Cecil Abraham, a local legal expert and member of the CAS arbitration panel, for further details and advice.”
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