| AFC | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Founded | 11 September 1926; 99 years ago (1926-09-11) |
| Headquarters | Wisma FAM,Kelana Jaya,Selangor, Malaysia |
| FIFA affiliation | 1954 |
| AFC affiliation | 1954[1] |
| AFF affiliation | 1984 |
| President | Datuk Yusoff Mahadi,Acting |
| General Secretary | Noor Azman Hj Rahman |
| Website | fam |
TheFootball Association of Malaysia (commonly abbreviated asFAM;Malay:Persatuan Bola Sepak Malaysia) is the national governing body offootball in Malaysia, headquartered atWisma FAM. The FAM is also one of the founding members of both theASEAN Football Federation (AFF) and theAsian Football Confederation (AFC). It has been affiliated withFIFA since 1954. The FAM oversees the organisation and development of football and advancing the game at all levels in Malaysia, and is responsible for all aspects of the amateur and professional game in its territory. This includes themen's,women's andyouth national football teams as well as the Malaysian Amateur Football League and Malaysia Premier Futsal League.
The British introduced football toMalaya, and the locals quickly embraced the game, making it the country's leading sport. By the late 19th century, football had become a central activity in most sports clubs across Malaya, though it lacked proper structure. The establishment of the Selangor Amateur Football League in 1905 brought some administration and organization, but the competition remained limited to clubs inKuala Lumpur.[2]
In 1921, thebattleshipHMS Malaya visited the country. After competing in football and rugby matches with local teams, the officers and crew decided to commemorate the games by presenting trophies for annual competitions in both sports. This led to the establishment of a national football tournament involving all states in Malaya. Known initially as theMalaya Cup—later renamed the Malaysia Cup in 1963—the competition has been held continuously, except during the war years.[2]
In 1926, the Selangor Amateur Football League was officially established. Ten years later, in 1936, theFootball Association of Selangor was formed. This association began organizing tournaments, which inspired other states in Malaya to follow suit. Also in 1926, the Football Associations of Perak, Selangor, Negeri Sembilan, Malacca, and the Singapore Amateur Football Association came together to form the Malayan Football Association (MFA). The MFA was created to assemble a Malayan team to compete against an Australian side visiting Singapore that year.[2]
In 1933, the MFA was reorganized into the Football Association of Malaya (FAM). Initially headquartered in Singapore, the FAM took on responsibility for running the Malaya Cup competition.[2]
The first FAM president was SirAndrew Caldecott, followed by M.B. Shelley, Dr. J.S. Webster, S.D. Scott, R. Williamson, and Adrian Clark, who served until 1940. As Europe entered full-scale war with Germany, FAM operations moved from Singapore to Malaya, and A.R. Singham became the first Asian secretary in 1941.[citation needed] After the war, J.E. King became FAM's president, succeeded by H.P. Byson and then Dr. C. Rawson, who served for two years before the position was taken over by the first non-British president.[2]
In 1951,Tunku Abdul Rahman—later Malaysia's first Prime Minister—was appointed as FAM president. Under his leadership, football in Malaysia entered a new phase, with the FAM playing a more prominent role beyond organizing theMalaysia Cup.[2]
In 1956, FAM became one of the 14 founding members of theAsian Football Confederation (AFC). Two years later, it achieved full membership inFIFA.[2]
Tunku Abdul Rahman's passion for football played a pivotal role in the construction of theMerdeka Stadium, which in 1957 became a historic site as the venue for Malaysia's independence declaration from Britain.[3]
The stadium also marked the beginning of the Merdeka Tournament (Pestabola Merdeka), which was popularly referred to as the 'Mini Asia Cup' from the 1960s to the 1980s.[4] The tournament was a significant success and inspired similar events such as theJakarta Anniversary Tournament in Indonesia, theKing's Cup in Thailand, and thePresident's Cup in South Korea.[5] The inauguraltournament—then the premier football competition in Asia—was won by Hong Kong.[3] Malaya claimed the title three consecutive times, winning in 1958 and 1959, and sharing it with South Korea in 1960.[3] The country later qualified for the1972 Summer Olympics in Munich and the1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow.[3]
In the early 1960s, the organization's name was officially changed to the Football Association of Malaysia (FAM). Tunku Abdul Rahman continued to promote football development, particularly through youth competitions, until his resignation in 1974.[2] His successor, Malaysia's second Prime Minister,Tun Abdul Razak, held the post for one year beforeHamzah Abu Samah took over in 1976. Hamzah, who was the Minister of Trade and Industry, introduced several initiatives to develop the sport.[2]
Between 1976 and 1984, numerous football programs were implemented under Hamzah's leadership.[2] The FAM entered a new phase when theSultan of Pahang,Haji Ahmad Shah, assumed leadership. His tenure saw the introduction of the semi-professional league in 1989, which eventually transitioned into full professionalism.[2] Despite these efforts, success on the international stage for Malaysia's national team remained elusive.[2]
One of the highlights of Malaysian football history was hosting the1997 FIFA World Youth Championship. Domestically, the league underwent several transformations, culminating in the establishment of the Malaysia Super League (M-League) in 2004. However, the national team suffered significant defeats in international competitions during this period.
On 13 September 2018, FAM received the AFC Dream Asia Award in the Developing Category.[6] In 2019, FAM was also awarded the AFC Dream Asia Award (Bronze) in the Inspiring Category.[7]
On 26 September 2025, FAM and seven Malaysian heritage players–Gabriel Felipe Arrocha,Facundo Tomás Garcés,Rodrigo Julián Holgado,Imanol Javier Machuca,João Vitor Brandão Figueiredo,Jon Irazábal Iraurgui, andHector Alejandro Hevel Serrano–were sanctioned by FIFA due to falsification and forgery of documents regarding the seven players' eligibility to play in thethird round of the 2027 AFC Asian Cup qualifiers against Vietnam. FAM was fined CHF 350,000 (around RM 1.9million) whereas each player was fined CHF 2,000 (around MR 10,560) and were suspended from all football related activities for 12 months. FAM has confirmed it will file an appeal against FIFA's sanctions.[8][9] On 3 November 2025, the FIFA Appeal Committee rejected FAM's appeal and the sanctions remains as it is.[10]
There are 20Football Associations affiliated to the FAM. Besides the 14 FAs with regional location, six others are affiliated units.[11][12]
Football Association of Perlis (PFA)
Football Association Penang (FAP)
Kedah Football Association (KFA)
Perak Football Association (PAFA)
Football Association of Selangor (FAS)
Kuala Lumpur Football Association (KLFA)
Negeri Sembilan Football Association (NSFA)
Melaka Football Association (MAFA)
Johor Football Association (JFA)
Football Association of Kelantan (KAFA)
Football Association of Terengganu (TFA)
Football Association of Pahang (PBNP)
Football Association of Sarawak (FAS)
Sabah Football Association (SAFA)
Malaysian Malay's Football Association (PBMM) Malaysian Chinese Football Association (MCFA) Malaysian Indian Sports Council (MISC) Royal Malaysia Police Football Association (RMPFA)Malaysian Armed Forces Football Association (AFFA) Football Coaches Association of Malaysia (PJBM)FAM-MSN Project (FMPS)The Football Association of Malaysia had run all top football competitions in Malaysia until 2015, when the Football Malaysia LLP (FMLLP), which is now known as theMalaysian Football League (MFL) was formed as part of the privatisation of the Malaysian football league system. The MFL took over all the top professional football competition previously managed by the FAM. The list below are the competitions which are managed by the Malaysia Football League since it inception in 2015:[17]
FAM also focuses on youth development football, women football andfutsal leagues and tournaments in Malaysia.[18]
| Office | Name | Tenure |
|---|---|---|
| President | SirAndrew Caldecott | 1933–1934 |
| M.B. Shelley | ||
| J.S. Webster | ||
| S.D. Scott | ||
| R. Williamson | ||
| Adrian Clark | 1938–1940 | |
| J.E. King | 1947–1948 | |
| H.P. Byson | 1948–1949 | |
| C. Rawson | 1949–1951 | |
| Tunku Abdul Rahman | 1958–1974 | |
| Abdul Razak Hussein | 1975–1976 | |
| Hamzah Abu Samah | 1976–1983 | |
| Ahmad Shah of Pahang | 1984–2014 | |
| Abdullah of Pahang | 2014–2017 | |
| Tunku Ismail Idris | 2017–2018 | |
| Hamidin Mohd Amin | 2018–2025 | |
| Mohd Joehari Mohd Ayub | 2025 |
| Office | Name | Tenure |
|---|---|---|
| General Secretary | A.R. Singham | 1941 |
| Kwok Kin Keng | 1948–1979 | |
| T.P. Murugasu | 1980–1987 | |
| Paul Mony Samuel | 1988–2000 | |
| Dell Akbar Khan | 2000-2005 | |
| Ibrahim Saad | 2005–2007 | |
| Azzuddin Ahmad | 2007–2013 | |
| Hamidin Mohd Amin | 2013–2018 | |
| Stuart Ramalingam | 2018–2021 | |
| Mohd Saifuddin Abu Bakar | 2021–2024 | |
| Noor Azman Hj Rahman | 2025–2029 |
| Name | Position | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Mohd Yusoff Mahadi | Acting President | [19] |
| S Sivasundaram | Vice President | [19] |
| Rosmadi Ismail | 2nd Vice President | [19] |
| Mohd Azhar Jamaluddin | 3rd Vice President | [19] |
| Dollah Salleh | 4th Vice President | [19] |
| Saaran Nadarajah | 5th Vice President | [20] |
| Noor Azman Hj Rahman | General Secretary | [19][20] |
| Ismail Karim | Treasurer | [19] |
 Scott O'Donell | Advisor & Agent | |
| Tan Cheng Hoe | Technical Director | [19][20] |
| Peter Cklamovski | Team Coach (Men's) | [19][20] |
 Joel Cornelli | Team Coach (Women's) | [19][20] |
| Hishamuddin Abdul Karim | Media/Communications Manager | [19] |
| P Sentikumar | Futsal Coordinator | [19] |
| Kassim Kadir Bacha | Referee Coordinator | [19] |
February 2025 Source
TheFIFA Disciplinary Committee has imposed sanctions on the Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) and seven players –Gabriel Felipe Arrocha,Facundo Tomás Garcés,Rodrigo Julián Holgado,Imanol Javier Machuca,João Vitor Brandão Figueiredo,Jon Irazábal Iraurgui andHector Alejandro Hevel Serrano – for breaches of article 22 of theFIFA Disciplinary Code (FDC) concerningforgery andfalsification.
The FAM had submitted eligibility enquiries to FIFA, and in doing so, it allegedly used doctored documentation to be able to field the above players. FAM appealed the sanction on 15th October 2025.
All seven players played for Malaysia against Vietnam in thethird round of qualifiers for the2027 AFC Asian Cup on 10 June 2025.[21]
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