PETALING JAYA: Asian Football Confederation (AFC) secretary general Datuk Seri Windsor Paul says there is no issue with the Malaysian Football League’s (MFL) decision regarding the registration status of heritage players from Johor Darul Ta’zim (JDT) and Kuching City.
“On behalf of the AFC, we accept the decision made by the MFL as it follows the MFL Competition Regulations,” he said in a statement yesterday.
“The decision was made with the support of the MFL competition articles, so there should be no issue with MFL’s decision.
“In fact, the regulation was also communicated to all clubs in the Malaysia League, so all parties were already aware of it.”
Windsor’s said this after MFL earlier confirmed that four heritage players’ registrations as local players complies with the 2025-2026 MFL competition regulations.
The players are JDT’s Joao Figueiredo, Jon Irazabal, Hector Hevel, and Kuching City’s Gabriel Palmero.
Under the rules, registration for local and foreign players requires a coloured copy of the identity card or passport.
Although MFL confirmed no rule violations occurred in their registrations, the players must still serve their 12-month ban from official matches.
The four players, as well as three others, including Facundo Garces, Rodrigo Holgado, and Imanol Machuca were sanctioned for falsifying eligibility documents, but the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) partially upheld the players’ appeal.
It allowed the players to train and participate in football-related activities with the club but not be fielded for official games.
