PETALING JAYA — The Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) has stressed that ties between state football associations (FAs) and football clubs (FCs) have never been severed, and are in fact being strengthened through a more holistic approach to ensure healthier development of football at the state level.
FAM president Datuk Mohd Joehari Mohd Ayub dismissed the perception that FAs and FCs operate independently, noting that most clubs remain under the ownership of their respective FAs, and working relationships are still intact.
“It’s often just assumptions made on the ground, particularly with issues like salary arrears. People tend to think there’s no collaboration between the FAs and FCs.
“But that’s not true. In reality, most FCs are still owned by FAs, which means the FAs are still responsible for their welfare,” he told reporters after a meeting with top leadership from FAs and FCs at Wisma FAM yesterday.
On the engagement session, Joehari said he was encouraged by the positive reception to FAM’s new approach, adding that regular discussions would be part of his presidency.
“It has always been positive. That’s why, as president, we’ll be holding more frequent meetings between FAs and FCs.
“We’ll also visit each state to hold dialogues with all stakeholders regularly,” he added.
Joehari said FAM and the Malaysian Football League (MFL) would also step up collaboration to ensure club management is more structured and accountable.
“That’s the purpose of today’s meeting — to ensure the joint involvement of both FAs and FCs. Working together, they can make state-level football healthier. This is one of the key strategies we’ll be implementing.”
Separately, Joehari praised national youth prospect Muhammad Ubaidullah Shamsul Fazili for his outstanding performance in Malaysia’s friendly against Cape Verde on May 29, saying it proved that local players have the ability to perform on the international stage.
“Ubaidullah was named Man of the Match — something neither he nor we expected. I believe the media has followed his progress, which began with the national project squad when I was team manager. It’s truly a proud moment,” he said.
In the match held at the Kuala Lumpur Football Stadium in Cheras, Harimau Malaya showed strong fighting spirit to hold Cape Verde — the 72nd-ranked team in the world — to a 1-1 draw.
Joehari also confirmed that national head coach Peter Cklamovski will soon announce the status of heritage player Rodrigo Holgado, and whether he will be included in the squad for Malaysia’s second Group F match of the 2027 Asian Cup Qualifiers against Vietnam on June 10 in Kuala Lumpur. — May 31, 2025