Sports lawyer speaks candidly about CAS ruling

The decision by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) to uphold the 12-month suspension for seven national players is sparking considerable debate within the sports legal community.

Recently, sports lawyer Zhafri Aminurrashid voiced his opinion, stating that this disciplinary measure is excessively severe when compared to many precedents handled previously.

According to lawyer Zhafri Aminurrashid, placing this case alongside those resolved in the past reveals that the level of punishment this time is relatively heavy. He points out that many prior cases even involved invalid nationality or birth documents yet did not lead to such long-term suspensions.

One example he mentioned is case CAS 2016/A/4831, where some players were found using invalid birth or nationality documents to represent the national team. At that time, FIFA only imposed a 10-match international ban on the involved players. Notably, they were not suspended from all football activities and could still play for their clubs.

Zhafri's analysis indicates that FIFA then considered the role of federation officials in the player registration process. These individuals were believed to have significant influence over completing administrative procedures, thus substantially reducing the players' responsibility.

Not stopping there, this lawyer also presented two other cases for comparison. The first case involves player Javier Eduardo Portillo. After review and appeals within FIFA's legal system and at CAS, the measure against Portillo mainly restricted his eligibility to represent the national team rather than imposing a long-term suspension.

Another notable case is that of Qatar player Pedro Miguel. At that time, Pedro Miguel's eligibility was questioned by several football federations, particularly regarding his documents and nationality. However, after FIFA and CAS investigation and review, this player did not receive any sports penalty. The case was subsequently regarded as an administrative issue.

From these precedents, Zhafri Aminurrashid believes CAS is fully capable of distinguishing between administrative errors and intentional fraudulent conduct by players. Therefore, upholding the 12-month suspension for the seven players leaves many perplexed.

Another noteworthy detail is that the Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) also admitted responsibility in overseeing and managing player records. According to Zhafri, this should have been considered a mitigating factor during the proceedings.

“Throughout the appeal process, FAM affirmed they accept responsibility for oversight shortcomings. Thus, it is puzzling that CAS still applied a severe penalty on the players despite the federation admitting the faults were theirs,” he stated.

Currently, all seven players have begun serving the remainder of their suspension starting March 5. Although banned from playing for 12 months, they are permitted to participate in other football activities such as training or team engagements.