Seven naturalised players in Malaysia’s national football team have obtained a reprieve from the Court of Arbitration for Sport, halting their 12-month suspension from all football-related activities, the Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) said on Tuesday.

FIFA suspended the seven naturalised players for 12 months and fined FAM 350,000 Swiss francs ($439,257) in September last year after finding that doctored documentation had been used to allow the players to participate in an Asian Cup qualifier against Vietnam.

FAM then took the case to CAS after FIFA dismissed its appeal. FIFA said it would launch a formal probe into the association’s internal operations and would notify authorities in five countries of potential criminal proceedings.

The players who were granted the reprieve were Facundo Garcés, Rodrigo Holgado, Imanol Machuca, João Figueiredo, Gabriel Palmero, Jon Irazabal and Héctor Hevel.

“This decision means that the 12-month suspension from all football activities imposed by FIFA on the seven players is temporarily suspended, and they are allowed to continue their careers and participate in any football-related activities until a final decision on the appeal at CAS is made,” FAM said on its Facebook account.

Following the document forgery scandal, FIFA overturned the results of three matches involving Malaysia after ruling that they had fielded these ineligible players.

The scandal drew criticism in Malaysia, with fans and several lawmakers calling for action to be taken against FAM as well as the government agencies responsible for granting citizenship to the players.

Malaysia’s Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim had vowed transparency in domestic investigations into the alleged forgery, but stressed that FAM should be allowed to defend itself.

-Reuters

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In the hushed corridors and high-ceilinged meeting rooms of Doha, where global football policy is debated long before it is felt on the pitch, Amaju Melvin Pinnick took his place among the game’s most influential decision-makers on Tuesday.

The former President of the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) and current Deputy Chairperson of the FIFA Men’s National Team Competitions Committee featured prominently at the FIFA Plenary Session and Committee Meetings held in the Qatari capital — a gathering that brought together senior football administrators from across continents to shape the future of international football.

It was a moment of high-level deliberations, where discussions ranged from the structure and calendar of men’s national team competitions to broader strategic policies affecting FIFA tournaments worldwide.

At the centre of those conversations sat Pinnick, one of Africa’s most visible football administrators of the past decade, continuing Nigeria’s representation at the sport’s most powerful table.

The Doha meetings underlined the growing importance of collaborative governance in an increasingly congested global football calendar. With national teams, clubs and confederations navigating competing interests, FIFA’s Men’s National Team Competitions Committee plays a pivotal role in aligning policy with practicality — from qualification pathways to tournament formats and scheduling frameworks.

Pinnick’s presence at the session was not merely ceremonial. As a committee leader, he participated in deliberations that will influence how national teams prepare, qualify and compete in FIFA tournaments in the coming years. His involvement reflects a continuity of influence built during his tenure at the NFF, when Nigeria regained visibility and credibility within global football governance structures.

For Nigeria, the optics and substance of Pinnick’s role in Doha matter. In an era when representation often translates into influence, having a Nigerian administrator actively engaged in FIFA’s decision-making processes reinforces the country’s standing beyond results on the field. It also highlights Africa’s broader contribution to shaping global football policy, rather than merely responding to decisions taken elsewhere.

The Doha meetings also served as a reminder of FIFA’s increasingly global outlook, with Qatar — fresh from hosting the 2022 World Cup — continuing to position itself as a hub for international football diplomacy. Against that backdrop, Pinnick’s participation symbolised the intersection of experience, continuity and continental representation.

As the sessions concluded, the outcomes may not yet be visible to fans, but their impact will eventually be felt in future tournaments, qualification systems and competition structures. For now, Nigeria’s seat at the table — occupied by one of its most prominent football administrators — remains firmly secured.

In Doha, amid policy papers and strategic frameworks, Amaju Pinnick’s presence spoke quietly but clearly: Nigeria is still part of the conversation shaping world football’s next chapter.

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A worldwide advocacy group has filed a complaint with FIFA’s Ethics Committee citing a lack of impartiality from organization president Gianni Infantino, as well as the political nature of last week’s 2026 World Cup draw, The Athletic reported Tuesday.

Center to the complaint is Infantino’s effusive praise of United States President Donald Trump, as well as world soccer’s governing body bestowing a first-of-its-kind FIFA Peace Prize on Trump.

FIFA, which is set to conduct the 2026 World Cup in the United States, Mexico and Canada, has always prided itself as “neutral in matters of politics and religion.”

The non-profit group FairSquare, which filed the complaint in an eight-page letter, says it is dedicated to accountability in sports in regard to labor migration and political repression.

 It wants FIFA’s independent committee to review the actions on full display during Friday’s World Cup draw that selected the spots for the 48 teams who will participate in next summer’s tournament.

President Trump was on hand for the ceremony, along with Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney. But it was Trump who received the most attention during the event at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C.

FIFA announced the formation of its peace prize last month “to reward individuals who have taken exceptional and extraordinary actions for peace and by doing so have united people across the world.”

Infantino presented Trump with a gold trophy, a gold medal and a certificate.

“This is your prize, this is your peace prize,” Infantino told Trump.

FIFA played a video that touched on some of Trump’s efforts toward peace.

“He supported efforts to broker ceasefires and promote diplomatic engagement, actions that helped create conditions in which peace could take root,” FIFA said in the video.

In the complaint, FairSquare cited FIFA’s own standards on neutrality to “remain politically neutral … in dealings with government institutions.” The group also pointed to Infantino lobbying on social media earlier this year for Trump to receive the Nobel Peace Prize for his handling of the Israel-Gaza conflict.

Venezuela’s Maria Corina Machado ultimately received the Nobel Peace Prize.

It was one of multiple breaches of ethics, and betrayals of neutrality referenced in the complaint.

Disciplinary action from the FIFA Ethics Committee can include a warning, a reprimand and even a fine. Compliance training can be ordered, while a ban also can be levied on participation in soccer-related activity.

-Reuters

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