Top Malaysian football officials quit over foreign-born players scandal

Kuala Lumpur: The entire executive committee of Malaysia s football association resigned Wednesday, the latest blow in a damaging eligibility row over...

Kuala Lumpur: The entire executive committee of Malaysia's football association resigned Wednesday, the latest blow in a damaging eligibility row over forged documents used to field foreign-born players in Asian Cup qualifiers.

The move follows FIFA's probe last year into the Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) over its inclusion of "heritage players" in the national team -- foreign-born athletes accused of falsely claiming Malaysian ancestry.

"The resignations are to safeguard the reputation and institutional interests of (the association) and to mitigate the risk of further adverse consequences that could affect Malaysian football as a whole," acting president Yusoff Mahadi told reporters.

He described the move as voluntary, and a "measured and principled step taken in response to recent developments that have attracted significant public attention and external scrutiny".

Wednesday's resignations will "provide the appropriate space for FIFA and the Asian Football Confederation to independently assess, review, and, where necessary, address governance, administrative, and procedural matters within FAM", Yusoff added.