A total of 23 footballers have been granted citizenship through naturalisation under Article 19 of Malaysia’s Federal Constitution since 2018.
Speaking in Parliament on Oct 9, Home Minister Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail said the seven footballers – Gabriel Felipe Arrocha, Facundo Tomás Garcés, Rodrigo Julián Holgado, Imanol Javier Machuca, João Vitor Brandão Figueiredo, Jon Irazábal Iraurgui and Hector Alejandro Hevel Serrano – who were recently sanctioned by Fifa, had met the requirements for naturalisation.
On Sept 26, Fifa’s Disciplinary Committee said it had imposed sanctions on the Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) and the players for breaching Article 22 of the Fifa Disciplinary Code concerning forgery and falsification.
FAM had submitted eligibility enquiries to Fifa using “doctored documentation” to field the players for its June 10 match against Vietnam.
The Malaysian football body was ordered to pay a fine of CHF350,000, while the players were each fined CHF2,000 and suspended from all football-related activities for 12 months.
Saifuddin did not provide the names of the 23 granted citizenship, nor indicate how many are still actively playing football.
Twentytwo13 takes a closer look at the list, based on information available in the public domain. The 23 players are: Mohamadou Sumareh, La’Vere Corbin-Ong, David Rowley, Quentin Cheng Jiun Ho, Liridon Krasniqi, Guilherme de Paula, Sergio Aguero, Lee Tuck, Stuart Wilkin, Nooa Laine, Endrick dos Santos Parafita, Paulo Josué, Romel Morales, Fergus Tierney, Richard Chin, Facundo Tomás Garcés, Gabriel Palmero, Rodrigo Julián Holgado, Imanol Javier Machuca, João Vitor Brandão Figueiredo, Jon Irazábal Iraurgui, Héctor Alejandro Hevel Serrano, and Jordan Mintah.
Below is a list of their ages at the time they were granted Malaysian citizenship.
