PETALING JAYA: Expanding membership to include a wider range of football stakeholders is among the key principles being considered in the ongoing review of the Football Association of Malaysia (FAM).
Asian Football Confederation (AFC) secretary-general Datuk Seri Windsor Paul said modern football governance encourages a more inclusive structure involving those actively involved in developing the sport.
At the moment, the state associations are the primary affiliates involved in the decision-making process for the FAM congress.
"Membership should consist of stakeholders who are actively playing and developing football in the country," he said.
He cited Japan as an example, noting that its football association initially consisted only of prefectures but later expanded to include professional clubs and other stakeholders as the sport grew.
Women’s football representatives were also given greater roles in decision-making bodies.
"In modern associations, membership includes those directly involved in football - clubs, coaches, referees and other stakeholders. That is what inclusiveness means, rather than having a very exclusive body running the sport," he added.
Windsor stressed that discussions on potential changes to FAM’s membership structure are still ongoing and any proposals will first be presented to member associations.
When asked whether the audit findings would be made public, Windsor said the full report would first be submitted to FAM.
"They can decide whether to make it public. But we will certainly share some of the findings," he said.
