PETALING JAYA: The smallest state Perlis is out to make big noise in the Super League this year after making a return.
After being away for 13 years, the northern side will be the 14th team in the top division following the Malaysian Football League (MFL)’s decision to give the M3 club an ‘extraordinary licence’ to compete.
The last time the Lions competed in the big league was in 2011, and since then, they had shifted between the Premier League and FAM League before going defunct in 2019.
Chief executive officer (CEO) Rozailmee Zulkeply said it was time for the state to compete in the big league again.
“Twenty years ago, Perlis won the Malaysia Cup, but since then, we have faced several failures. The state of football in Perlis, which was once strong, had turned weak,” he said.
“We are now making efforts to bring Perlis back into the Super League as people are yearning for the team’s resurgence.
On the coaching set up, Rozailmee said: “We have a few names in mind but we will finalise soon after discussions.”
“We respect MFL’s decision and will respect all the conditions set by them. We believe that MFL are wise in their evaluation process.”
Several M3 clubs including last season’s champions Immigration and runners-up Kuala Lumpur Rovers applied for the licence but the footballing body saw Perlis as the best fit, thanks to their documentation and financial backing.
According to MFL’s CEO Stuart Ramalingam, Perlis had the assurance of several sponsors and also the state government.
“After careful review and evaluation, we find that the club have documents with copies of sponsorship letters amounting to RM25mil from four potential sponsors namely Mudim Zakaria Food Industries Sdn Bhd, Ivory Properties Group Berhad, MA Intelligent Holdings Sdn Bhd and Al Razi Holding ( M) Sdn Bhd.
“They also submitted a copy of a cheque amounting to RM5mil from one of the sponsors as proof of the team’s financial funds.
“In addition, the club also submitted a letter of support from the state government signed by the Menteri Besar Mohd Shukri Ramli as well as a letter of support from the Perlis Football Association.”
However, the MFL board of directors decided that Perlis would only be granted an ‘extraordinary conditional licence’. The club still have to comply with several requirements and criteria set by the First Instance Body (FIB).
