The Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) has accepted to let Malaysia participate in the CAFA Nations Cup, organized by the Central Association of Football Associations (CAFA). The tournament will take place from August 26 to September 9 in Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan.
The tournament will have the participation of many teams. In addition to Malaysia, the tournament also has the participation of Iran (18th in the world), Uzbekistan (57th), Oman (77th), Kyrgyzstan (103rd), Tajikistan (104th) and Afghanistan (160th).
Of these, Iran and Uzbekistan are the two teams that have qualified for the 2026 World Cup, while Oman qualified for the fourth qualifying round.
This is the first time the Malaysian team has participated in this quite high-quality tournament. That shows the rising position of Harimau Malaysia (the nickname of the Malaysian team). The upcoming tournament will bring Malaysia the opportunity to face strong teams outside Southeast Asia.
We are proud to participate in the CAFA Cup. The Malaysian team will face difficult challenges away from home and playing in a harsh environment with strong opponents.
These experiences will challenge us in many ways, both on and off the pitch, and will be very important for the continuous development of the Malaysian team, said coach Peter Cklamovski.
In the 2027 Asian Cup qualifiers, Malaysia is leading Group F after two 2-0 victories over Nepal and 4-0 against Vietnam. The strength of the Malaysian team has increased significantly after naturalizing a series of quality players in all 3 lines.
According to the October schedule, the Malaysian team will play 2 more matches in the 2027 Asian Cup qualifiers, both against Laos on October 9 and 14.
