KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian Football League (MFL) chief executive officer Mohd Shazli Shaik has confirmed that a meeting with Super League club CEOs will be held before the end of April, following growing calls for a roundtable discussion on financial sustainability and reforms.
Shazli said the session had already been in the pipeline but would now proceed in response to concerns raised publicly by several club leaders.
“We already had plans to meet with the club CEOs.
“However, given the requests and views expressed publicly, MFL will host the meeting. I expect that we will hold this session before the end of April,” he said.
He stressed that the league is still in the early stages of implementing Financial Fair Play (FFP) regulations and dismissed suggestions that the competition is in decline.
“We are only in the first year of Financial Fair Play implementation. Even La Liga took five years to fully stabilise their league.
“Therefore, we do not feel the league is in a critical state or moving backward,” he said.
“This upcoming meeting will be the best platform for us to listen to the clubs and respond to the issues raised.”
Shazli was responding to calls from several Super League club CEOs urging collective action and long-term reforms to address mounting financial challenges.
According to the FFP secretariat report, he noted that most clubs are operating within financial limits, spending below 80 per cent of their approved total income.
Calls for reform in the M-League have intensified in recent weeks, with key issues expected to be discussed at the meeting include club finances, league structure and long-term sustainability measures.
On concerns over delayed salary payments, Shazli suggested these were likely due to internal club management issues or delays in sponsorship funds, rather than shortcomings in MFL’s monitoring system.
Meanwhile, he rejected claims that this season’s Malaysia and Challenge Cup campaigns lacked excitement, pointing to strong attendance figures as evidence of continued fan support.
“If you look at the match between Penang and Sabah, it was a full house. The same goes for Selangor against Kuching City,” he said.
“In fact, information from the Kuching City CEO indicates that their ticket sales have been very strong, surpassing regular league matches.”
