The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) has not yet issued a ruling immediately after the hearing on February 26 related to the appeal of 7 naturalized Malaysian players.
Instead of having an immediate conclusion as initially planned, this agency confirmed that it needs more time to comprehensively assess the dossier before announcing the decision.
CAS spokeswoman Vanessa Tracey said that the panel of judges had conducted the working session as scheduled but could not finalize the results. According to her, a preliminary decision (without full legal arguments) is expected to be announced next week.
After that, the detailed judgment will be completed and sent to the parties involved. If there are no confidentiality requirements, the entire text of the ruling may be made public.
This information was also confirmed by journalist Zulhelmi Zainal Azam of Atro Arena newspaper. He said that the review process is entering an internal phase, where council members need to carefully review each argument before agreeing on a final view.
According to analysis from CAS, the cause of the delay lies in the complexity of the case. The dispute involves qualifying conditions for competition, requiring high caution to avoid creating a precedent that causes controversy.
Previously, FIFA applied a 12-month suspension and financial penalties to 7 naturalized players and the Football Association of Malaysia (FAM). The names identified as violating include Facundo Garces, Rodrigo Holgado, Imanol Machuca, Joao Figueiredo, Gabriel Palmero, Jon Irazabal and Hector Hevel. These are all expected factors in the long-term plan of the Malaysian national team.
Therefore, the ruling from CAS not only determines the future of each individual's competition but also directly affects the strength of the national team. Any conclusion made may have a profound impact on the development orientation of Malaysian football in the coming period.
