Revisiting Fifa-banned heritage players: From RM33m in market value to zero

The 12-month suspensions imposed on the seven foreign-born "heritage" footballers at the centre of Malaysia’s International Federation of Association Football (Fifa) eligibility scandal expired on Oct 31, allowing them to resume their playing careers from Nov 1.

According to a Malaysian Football League (MFL) circular dated Oct 30, the suspensions had ended, a development subsequently confirmed by MFL CEO Shazli Shaik Mohd on Nov 1.

However, the expiry of the suspensions does not mean the players can return to the national team. Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) president Ab Ghani Hassan has said that the seven remain ineligible to represent Malaysia under Fifa's decision, meaning they can resume playing at club level but cannot turn out for Harimau Malaya.

The seven are Gabriel Felipe Arrocha (Gabriel Palmero) (Spain), Facundo Tomás Garcés (Argentina), Rodrigo Julián Holgado (Argentina), Imanol Javier Machuca (Argentina), João Vítor Brandão Figueiredo (Brazil), Jon Irazábal Iraurgui (Spain) and Héctor Alejandro Hevel Serrano (the Netherlands).

Their international eligibility, citizenship status and the circumstances surrounding their recruitment therefore remain contentious issues.

Four of the seven players - Figueiredo, Palmero, Irazábal and Hevel - are with Johor Darul Ta’zim (JDT). Brunei’s DPMM FC confirmed Holgado has joined the club.

Against this backdrop, Malaysiakini revisits the players’ estimated market values before the sanctions, as well as the controversies surrounding their naturalisation and recruitment, which have raised wider questions about the FAM and the government's handling of citizenship approvals.

Before the sanctions, the players had a combined estimated market value of €8.35 million (about RM32.8 million), based on Transfermarkt valuations as of June 2025.

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It is important to note that these figures represent the players’ estimated worth in the transfer market, rather than their salaries or the amounts their clubs paid to recruit them.

Transfermarkt's valuations are estimates of what players could command in the transfer market, not actual transfer fees. The platform's valuations are also subject to periodic updates, incorporating input from the players' respective agents.

Among the seven players, Argentine midfielder Machuca commanded the highest estimated market value at €2.5 million at the time of his Malaysia debut.

Brazilian striker Figueiredo and Argentine defender Garcés were each valued at €2 million, while Holgado was valued at €800,000.

Spanish defender Iraurgui was valued at €600,000, Dutch midfielder Hevel at €400,000, and Palmero at €50,000.

Separately, Spanish midfielder Nacho Méndez is another foreign-born player linked to the wider heritage-player drive, but he was not among the seven players sanctioned by Fifa.

Méndez obtained Malaysian citizenship on July 9, 2025, and joined JDT on the same day on a free transfer from Spanish club Sporting Gijón. His estimated market value was €1.5 million.

His recruitment is nevertheless relevant to the wider heritage-player drive, which has come under increased scrutiny following Fifa’s findings.

Méndez’s salary at JDT has not been publicly disclosed, although there have been reports putting his annual wage at around €400,000.

Other JDT-linked players examined by the team include Romel Morales (on loan to Terengganu FC), whose market value is estimated at €300,000, Natxo Insa at €25,000, and Christian Abad Amat at €50,000.

Revisiting the controversy

The heritage-player controversy erupted after Malaysia’s 4-0 victory over Vietnam in an AFC Asian Cup qualifier in June 2025 prompted a formal complaint to Fifa questioning the eligibility of several recruits.

Following its investigation, Fifa ruled in September last year that FAM had breached Article 22 of its disciplinary code relating to document falsification, specifically over the use of false documents concerning the players’ claimed Malaysian ancestry. Fifa then suspended the seven players.

Fifa fined FAM 350,000 Swiss francs (RM1.7 million), overturned Malaysia’s victory over Vietnam into a 3-0 defeat and banned the seven players from international football for 12 months.

READ MORE: Suspended 'heritage' players mulling legal action against FAM

The international football body also annulled the results of three international friendlies Malaysia played against Cape Verde, Singapore and Palestine.

Following the Court of Arbitration for Sport ruling on March 5, which partially upheld Fifa’s sanctions by limiting the players’ 12-month suspensions to official matches rather than all football-related activities, Transfermarkt's market value of all seven heritage players dipped to zero.

The spotlight also fell on JDT owner, Johor Regent Tunku Ismail Sultan Ibrahim, who had previously said the seven heritage players were among those recommended to him and the FAM, and were subsequently approved by the government to play for Malaysia.

In a major development, the entire FAM executive committee for the 2025-2029 term stepped down en masse with immediate effect in January this year. The association subsequently held an election to reconstitute the committee for the remainder of the term.

The outgoing committee at that time said its collective resignation was intended to safeguard the association’s integrity and reputation while preventing further repercussions that could harm Malaysian football.

It added that the decision would allow global and regional football authorities, including Fifa and the Asian Football Confederation (AFC), to conduct an independent review of FAM’s governance, administration and procedures without interference or any perceived conflict of interest.

READ MORE: COMMENT | FAM's old guard returns: Cheating forgiven, trust forgotten

Following its election at the second FAM extraordinary congress on Sept 17, the association’s new executive committee, led by Ghani, began restructuring its leadership for the remainder of the 2025–2029 term.

Among the most notable appointments is former deputy inspector-general of police, Ayob Khan Mydin Pitchay, who will head FAM's integrity unit.

What the law says

Under Article 19 of the Federal Constitution, foreigners seeking Malaysian citizenship through naturalisation are generally required to have resided in the country for at least 10 years out of the preceding 12 years, possess an adequate knowledge of Bahasa Malaysia and satisfy other conditions before citizenship may be granted.

Yet those involved in the scandal obtained Malaysian citizenship well before meeting the residency requirement.

Palmero acquired Malaysian citizenship on March 19, 2025, while playing for Spanish club Unionistas CF on loan from CD Tenerife. He made his international debut for Malaysia on May 29, 2025. Despite his current suspension, Palmero joined JDT’s roster on Aug 9, 2026.

Irazábal joined JDT on July 1, 2025, after obtaining Malaysian citizenship on June 4, 2025. Hevel also joined JDT on July 1, 2025, after obtaining citizenship on March 19, 2025.

Figueiredo joined JDT on July 6, 2025, after obtaining citizenship on June 4, 2025. Garcés obtained citizenship on June 2, 2025, and made his Malaysia debut on June 10, 2025. Machuca and Holgado obtained citizenship on the same date.

Other players' citizenship histories

The controversy, however, is not exclusive to the seven players sanctioned by Fifa. Separately, the team's checks identified other foreign-born players linked to JDT whose citizenship histories raise questions about how Malaysia's naturalisation requirements are being applied.

These cases are not connected to the Fifa disciplinary proceedings involving the seven players. None of the other players examined was sanctioned by Fifa in connection with the case involving the seven.

Other cases include JDT players whose citizenships were obtained before they had accumulated 10 years of residence in Malaysia, including Amat, Endrick dos Santos Parafita, Liridon Krasniqi, Insa and Morales.

JDT goalkeeper Amat acquired Malaysian citizenship in 2024 before joining the club on July 29 that year. He has since received a call-up to the national squad but is yet to make his international debut.

Some cases go back to previous seasons. Brazilian midfielder Parafita arrived in Malaysia in 2019, but became a Malaysian citizen in 2023. Matos, who first played in Malaysia in 2015, obtained citizenship in 2021, while Kosovo-born Krasniqi, who began playing in the country in 2015, became a Malaysian citizen in 2020.

Spanish player Insa obtained Malaysian citizenship in June 2017 and joined JDT the following month. He made his Malaysia debut on March 22, 2018, earning two caps. He is the brother of Francisco Javier Insa Bohigues, better known as Kiko Insa, JDT’s sporting director and a former Malaysia international.

Colombian forward Morales had spent five years in Malaysia before obtaining citizenship in late 2023.

None of these players had fulfilled the Federal Constitution’s 10-year residency requirement when citizenship was granted.

The apparent disparity has fuelled broader questions about the consistency of Malaysia’s citizenship regime, particularly as long-term residents, spouses of Malaysians and children born overseas to Malaysian mothers have faced lengthy waits or repeated applications before securing citizenship.

However, it must be noted that Fifa’s player eligibility criteria for naturalisation differ from the requirements for acquiring national citizenship.

Fifa stipulates that a player must reside in a country for five consecutive years to qualify for naturalisation.

In Malaysia's context, ministerial discretion was exercised to deem seven “heritage” players as having fulfilled the minimum residency requirement.

READ MORE: 'Heritage' footballers met all requirements under my discretion - Saifuddin

Furthermore, the use of executive powers is neither new nor exclusive to these seven players, as it has long been applied without controversy due to clear records of their physical presence in the country.

Further scrutiny

Our investigation also identified four other JDT players whose Philippine citizenship status warrants further scrutiny. They are Spanish players Óscar Arribas, Teto Martín and Antonio Glauder, and French player Enzo Lombardo.

On Sept 7, Martín left JDT and joined CE Europa, in the Spanish Third Division. The team, however, could not fully verify when the four acquired Philippine citizenship, but all had been playing in European leagues before joining JDT.

Of the four, only Arribas has been called up to the Philippines national team. He was called up in November 2022 but declined to join the squad at the time. According to Stadium Astro, there are increasing rumours that Arribas is undergoing the naturalisation process to become a Malaysian citizen and be eligible to join Harimau Malaya.

On Aug 14, SNE Sports reported on Facebook that Arribas had added the Malaysian flag to his Instagram profile, further fuelling speculation that he could be in line for naturalisation.

The cases raise further questions about the processes through which foreign-born footballers with links to Malaysia or other countries acquire citizenship and subsequently become eligible to represent national teams.

The team has reached out to Tunku Ismail for comments, but has not received a reply.

The team has also approached the Home Ministry and the National Registration Department for comments on questions surrounding the citizenship status of several other players mentioned in the report.

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