Heritage footballers issue must serve as a lesson - Sultan Abdullah

Pahang ruler Sultan Abdullah Sultan Ahmad Shah decreed that the issue involving the seven heritage football players must serve as a lesson and warning to all parties.

His Majesty, who is also the former president of the Football Association of Malaysia (FAM), decreed that the responsible parties must strive to rectify the situation out of love for local football, enabling the sport to rise above the problems plaguing it.

Sultan Abdullah also called on all parties to give space for the investigation into the issue to be carried out fairly.

“To be fair, let the process take its course. Let the truth prevail. Let the truth come out from the responsible parties,” His Majesty said at the “Walk With Al-Sultan Abdullah: The King of Sports” event at Merdeka Stadium, Kuala Lumpur, today.

On Monday, the International Federation of Association Football (Fifa) rejected the appeal by FAM and the seven players, namely Gabriel Felipe Arrocha, Facundo Garces, Rodrigo Holgado, Imanol Machuca, Joao Figueiredo, Jon Irazabal, and Hector Hevel.

The Fifa Appeals Committee upheld the penalty imposed by the body’s Disciplinary Committee against FAM and the seven players for offences related to document forgery under Article 22 of the Fifa Disciplinary Code.

Following this, FAM was ordered to pay a fine of 350,000 Swiss francs (about RM1.8 million), while the seven players were each fined 2,000 Swiss francs and suspended for 12 months from all football-related activities.

FAM and the players involved have 10 days to request the full written judgment and 21 days to file an appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS).

FAM acting president Yusoff Mahadi, who was surprised by the decision, said his party would write to Fifa to obtain the full details and written reasons for the decision before determining the next step for submitting an appeal to CAS.

Event for sports legends

Sultan Abdullah, at today’s event, which gathered 150 guests including several national sports legends, was accompanied by Tengku Ampuan Pahang Tunku Azizah Aminah Maimunah Iskandariah.

Organised by ShekhinahPR in collaboration with Yayasan Al-Sultan Abdullah (Yasa), the event brought together 150 guests, including Santokh Singh and Soh Chin Aun (football), Rashid Sidek and James Selvaraj (badminton), and Leong Mun Yee (diving).

The event began with Sultan Abdullah and Tunku Azizah participating in a Zumba session before circling the track of the iconic venue, followed by a meal with guests.

Regarding the event, Sultan Abdullah decreed that the idea came from His Majesty himself for the sports legends who once served the country.

“We really miss the old-timers. This idea actually originated from me after frequently visiting the mosque next door, Masjid Al-Sultan Abdullah, and noticing the tall building (Merdeka 118) and this iconic stadium, Merdeka Stadium.

“So, I came up with this idea to walk here once, and why walk alone? Well, let’s invite the legends, sportspersons and former athletes, and all parties involved to remember this Merdeka Stadium a long time ago,” His Majesty said.

His Majesty is also open to the idea of continuing to organise this event as an annual affair in the future.

- Bernama

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