 | |
Founded | 1933 |
FIFA affiliation | 1956 |
AFC affiliation | 1954 |
The Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) is the governing body for soccer in Malaysia, responsible for organising the Malaysian national football team and the major soccer tournaments within the country. Football arrived in Malaya with the British. The locals soon picked up the game, and before long it was the country's leading sport. Towards the end of the nineteenth century, football was one of the central pillars of most sports clubs in Malaya. But it was not structured. Even when the Selangor Amateur Football League took shape in 1905 – which ensured proper administration and organisation – the competition was confined only to clubs in the Kuala Lumpur area.
Before the establishment of Malaysia on September 16, 1963, the Malaysia national football team was known as Malaya national football team. Malaya's biggest achievement in football was becoming the bronze medalist in 1962 Asian Games held in Jakarta, Indonesia after defeating South Vietnam 4-1.
After the establishment of the Malaysian Federation in 1963, the team became known as the Malaysia national football team. Malaysia qualified for the 1972 Olympics in Munich, beating Japan, South Korea, Taiwan and Philippines en route. Although they managed to defeat the United States 3-0, they lost the other 2 matches by losing 3-0 to West Germany and 6-0 to Morocco. Two years later, Malaysia won their second bronze medal at the 1974 Asian Games after defeating North Korea 2-1. The team went on to qualify twice in a row for the AFC Asian Cup, in 1976 and 1980. Malaysia qualified again for the Olympics in 1980 in Moscow, but joined the boycott of the games. The team also won the Merdeka Tournament 3 times, became runner-up 4 times and being third place 2 times during the 1970s.
In 1994 as Malaysian football was embroiled in one of the biggest bribery scandals in the country. With the dearth of mainstream interest and lack of funds, Malaysian football has failed to repeat the achievements of the 1970s and 1980s, despite the recruitment of Claude LeRoy. Harris came with strong credentials, having assisted Terry Venables at FC Barcelona and Allan Harris as coaches.
After the removal of Norizan Bakar, B. Sathianathan took over as head coach. Although he guided the squad to win the 2007 Merdeka Tournament, Malaysia once again failed to qualify for the World Cup after losing 4-1 and drawing 0-0 with Bahrain in the qualifying round.
In 2008, Sathianathan once again guided the team to the final of the 2008 Merdeka Tournament. However, Malaysia lost through penalties to Vietnam. Sathianathan also led Malaysia to the semi finals of 2008 Myanmar Grand Royal Challenge Cup. However, Malaysia then shockingly lost 4-1 to eventually winners, Myanmar.
During the 2008 AFF Suzuki Cup, Malaysia started their campaign with a 3-0 win over Laos, but were defeated in the second match by Vietnam with a score of 2-3 and were finally eliminated when they lost 3-0 to Thailand in the final match of the group stage. This was the first time that the Malaysian squad had not passed through the group stages in 12 years.
In the 2011 Asian Cup qualifiers, the Malaysian team lost 0-5 to the United Arab Emirates. This defeat was the final straw in the eyes of the Malaysian supporters, and in February 2009, the contracts of Sathianathan and manager Soh Chin Aun were terminated.[3] Former U-20 Malaysia and Kelantan coach, K. Rajagopal was selected has the new head coach for Malaysia. He took over on July 2009.
During the 2010 AFF Suzuki Cup, Malaysia had a selection of young players at the final 22 men squad. Malaysia had 14 players at the age of under-23 while the other players were over 23. Malaysia were in group A with host Indonesia, Thailand and qualifiers winner, Laos. Malaysia begin their campaign with a embarrassing lost of 5-1 against Indonesia after costly own goal error by Mohd Asraruddin Putra Omar. Malaysia bounced back from their defeat and later drew against Thailand and beat Laos 5-1. As runner up of group, Malaysia qualified to the semi finals to met Group B winners and the defending champions Vietnam. At the first leg, Malaysia won 2-0 against Vietnam at home soil and later drew at the second leg. The final aggregate was 2-0 to Malaysia. Malaysia went to the finals to meet Indonesia. On the first leg of the finals, Malaysia won 3-0 in home. Malaysia was scored twice by Safee Sali and one by Mohd Ashaari Shamsuddin. For the first time, The stadium was full and reached over capacity with both Malaysian and Indonesian fans storming the stadium. This was the first time that the National Stadium, Bukit Jalil was full since Manchester United FC visited Malaysia on July 18, 2009. On the second leg of the finals that was held in Jakarta, Malaysia lost 2-1 to Indonesia but the final aggregate was 4-2 to Malaysia, hence giving the title to Malaysia.
Malaysia won the 2010 AFF Suzuki Cup title for the first time in their history under the management of K. Rajagopal.
On 4 February 2011, FAM announced that they would call up the Malaysian/Australian player that is currently playing for Sydney FC, Brendan Gan. Even though Brendan was born and raised at Australia, He could play for Malaysia through parentage as his father is a Malaysian Chinese from Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia.
Malaysia's 2011 campaign started off brilliantly with a 2-0 win against Hong Kong. Malaysia was scored by Mohd Safiq Rahim on the 44th minute and Mohd Amirul Hadi Zainal on the 92th minute. FAM wanted to boost the morale for the national team by hosting a major tournament. On 19 February 2011, the ASEAN Football Federation announced that Malaysia and Thailand will be the preliminary host of the 2012 AFF Suzuki Cup.
Malaysia uses the same squad for the under-23 team and the national team under the new management of K. Rajagopal. Malaysia national football team uses players below the age of 23, together with their senior players like Safee Sali and Mohd Norhafiz Zamani Misbah. This was set for the national team to prepare the challenges ahead of them.
Malaysia will use the under-23 team for the upcoming tournament such as the Ho Chi Minh City Cup, 2010 Asian Games and 2010 AFF Suzuki Cup. Malaysia used this way since the Football Association of Malaysia chairman, HRH Sultan Ahmad Shah, planned this and set the plan mainly for K. Rajagopal. This is as a result after the humiliation lost 0-5 to the United Arab Emirates at the 2011 Asian Cup Qualifiers. The Asian Games will be Malaysia preparation match for the 2010 AFF Suzuki Cup.
Some of the players who currently play for Malaysia are from the Harimau Muda A team which is the national under-21 side.
In the 2010 Asian Games in Guangzhou, Malaysia beat all odds to qualify for the second round for the first time in 32 years as one of the best four third-placed teams. They later went on to win the 2010 AFF Suzuki Cup by out classing fierce rival Indonesia 4-2 on aggregate.
After the successful year on both the senior team and the under-23 team, K. Rajagopal duty with the under-23 ended when he was replaced by the under-21 team coach, Ong Kim Swee. However, K. Rajagopal is still in charge of the senior team. Ong Kim Swee first duty with the under-23 were two international friendly matches against Thailand under-23 and Singapore under-23. Malaysia Under-23 lost narrowly 2-1 to Thailand U-23 and won 2-0 against Singapore Under-23.
Before the establishment of Malaysia on September 16, 1963, the Malaysia national football team was known as Malaya national football team. Malaya's biggest achievement in football was becoming the bronze medalist in 1962 Asian Games held in Jakarta, Indonesia after defeating South Vietnam 4-1.
After the establishment of the Malaysian Federation in 1963, the team became known as the Malaysia national football team. Malaysia qualified for the 1972 Olympics in Munich, beating Japan, South Korea, Taiwan and Philippines en route. Although they managed to defeat the United States 3-0, they lost the other 2 matches by losing 3-0 to West Germany and 6-0 to Morocco. Two years later, Malaysia won their second bronze medal at the 1974 Asian Games after defeating North Korea 2-1. The team went on to qualify twice in a row for the AFC Asian Cup, in 1976 and 1980. Malaysia qualified again for the Olympics in 1980 in Moscow, but joined the boycott of the games. The team also won the Merdeka Tournament 3 times, became runner-up 4 times and being third place 2 times during the 1970s.
In 1994 as Malaysian football was embroiled in one of the biggest bribery scandals in the country. With the dearth of mainstream interest and lack of funds, Malaysian football has failed to repeat the achievements of the 1970s and 1980s, despite the recruitment of Claude LeRoy. Harris came with strong credentials, having assisted Terry Venables at FC Barcelona and Allan Harris as coaches.
2005-2007
Norizan Bakar became the next head coach of the Malaysian team. He guided the Malaysian squad to the ASEAN Cup semifinals in 2007, where Malaysia lost through penalties to Singapore. Norizan's position as the head coach was criticized by the Malaysian football community, fans and officials alike, after the team's performances during the 2007 AFC Asian Cup, where Malaysia lost to China 1-5, Uzbekistan 0-5 and Iran 0-2.After the removal of Norizan Bakar, B. Sathianathan took over as head coach. Although he guided the squad to win the 2007 Merdeka Tournament, Malaysia once again failed to qualify for the World Cup after losing 4-1 and drawing 0-0 with Bahrain in the qualifying round.
2007-2009
In 2008, Sathianathan once again guided the team to the final of the 2008 Merdeka Tournament. However, Malaysia lost through penalties to Vietnam. Sathianathan also led Malaysia to the semi finals of 2008 Myanmar Grand Royal Challenge Cup. However, Malaysia then shockingly lost 4-1 to eventually winners, Myanmar.
During the 2008 AFF Suzuki Cup, Malaysia started their campaign with a 3-0 win over Laos, but were defeated in the second match by Vietnam with a score of 2-3 and were finally eliminated when they lost 3-0 to Thailand in the final match of the group stage. This was the first time that the Malaysian squad had not passed through the group stages in 12 years.
In the 2011 Asian Cup qualifiers, the Malaysian team lost 0-5 to the United Arab Emirates. This defeat was the final straw in the eyes of the Malaysian supporters, and in February 2009, the contracts of Sathianathan and manager Soh Chin Aun were terminated.[3] Former U-20 Malaysia and Kelantan coach, K. Rajagopal was selected has the new head coach for Malaysia. He took over on July 2009.
Revival of the national team
On July 2009, K. Rajagopal was named the new coach of Malaysia replacing B. Sathianathan as head coach of Malaysia. K. Rajagopal was also the coach of the Under-23 Malaysia.K. Rajagopal's first duty was against Zimbabwe. Malaysia won 4-0. Rajagopal also coached Malaysia in two games against the visiting English champions, Manchester United FC, losing in both matches 2–3 and 0–2. During his duty as the coach of the Under-23 team, K. Rajagopal led Malaysia to their fifth SEA Games gold medal and also led Malaysia to qualify for the second round of the 2010 Asian Games as one of the best four third-placed teams after a lapse of 32 years.During the 2010 AFF Suzuki Cup, Malaysia had a selection of young players at the final 22 men squad. Malaysia had 14 players at the age of under-23 while the other players were over 23. Malaysia were in group A with host Indonesia, Thailand and qualifiers winner, Laos. Malaysia begin their campaign with a embarrassing lost of 5-1 against Indonesia after costly own goal error by Mohd Asraruddin Putra Omar. Malaysia bounced back from their defeat and later drew against Thailand and beat Laos 5-1. As runner up of group, Malaysia qualified to the semi finals to met Group B winners and the defending champions Vietnam. At the first leg, Malaysia won 2-0 against Vietnam at home soil and later drew at the second leg. The final aggregate was 2-0 to Malaysia. Malaysia went to the finals to meet Indonesia. On the first leg of the finals, Malaysia won 3-0 in home. Malaysia was scored twice by Safee Sali and one by Mohd Ashaari Shamsuddin. For the first time, The stadium was full and reached over capacity with both Malaysian and Indonesian fans storming the stadium. This was the first time that the National Stadium, Bukit Jalil was full since Manchester United FC visited Malaysia on July 18, 2009. On the second leg of the finals that was held in Jakarta, Malaysia lost 2-1 to Indonesia but the final aggregate was 4-2 to Malaysia, hence giving the title to Malaysia.
Malaysia won the 2010 AFF Suzuki Cup title for the first time in their history under the management of K. Rajagopal.
2011
After the successful year on 2010, Malaysia had high hopes for qualifying and winning friendly matches in the upcoming tournaments such as the 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification. The Malaysian under-23 team, had been taken over by Ong Kim Swee and his Under 21 team, Harimau Muda A. Malaysia coach, K. Rajagopal had arranged a friendly match against Hong Kong which is ranked 145th. K. Rajagopal says that Malaysia should play a match once a month. On the under 23 side, Ong Kim Swee arranged two friendly matches against Thailand under-23 and Singapore under-23 in a preparation for the 2012 AFC Men's Pre-Olympic Tournament. Malaysia U-23 lost narrowly 2-1 to Thailand U-23 and won 2-0 against Singapore U-23.On 4 February 2011, FAM announced that they would call up the Malaysian/Australian player that is currently playing for Sydney FC, Brendan Gan. Even though Brendan was born and raised at Australia, He could play for Malaysia through parentage as his father is a Malaysian Chinese from Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia.
Malaysia's 2011 campaign started off brilliantly with a 2-0 win against Hong Kong. Malaysia was scored by Mohd Safiq Rahim on the 44th minute and Mohd Amirul Hadi Zainal on the 92th minute. FAM wanted to boost the morale for the national team by hosting a major tournament. On 19 February 2011, the ASEAN Football Federation announced that Malaysia and Thailand will be the preliminary host of the 2012 AFF Suzuki Cup.
Under-23 takes charge
The former Malaysia under-20 and under-23 coach K. Rajagopal was selected to replace B. Sathianathan as the national coach in April 2009. Unlike before, K. Rajagopal had to be the coach of both the Malaysia senior team and the Under-23 team.Malaysia uses the same squad for the under-23 team and the national team under the new management of K. Rajagopal. Malaysia national football team uses players below the age of 23, together with their senior players like Safee Sali and Mohd Norhafiz Zamani Misbah. This was set for the national team to prepare the challenges ahead of them.
Malaysia will use the under-23 team for the upcoming tournament such as the Ho Chi Minh City Cup, 2010 Asian Games and 2010 AFF Suzuki Cup. Malaysia used this way since the Football Association of Malaysia chairman, HRH Sultan Ahmad Shah, planned this and set the plan mainly for K. Rajagopal. This is as a result after the humiliation lost 0-5 to the United Arab Emirates at the 2011 Asian Cup Qualifiers. The Asian Games will be Malaysia preparation match for the 2010 AFF Suzuki Cup.
Some of the players who currently play for Malaysia are from the Harimau Muda A team which is the national under-21 side.
In the 2010 Asian Games in Guangzhou, Malaysia beat all odds to qualify for the second round for the first time in 32 years as one of the best four third-placed teams. They later went on to win the 2010 AFF Suzuki Cup by out classing fierce rival Indonesia 4-2 on aggregate.
After the successful year on both the senior team and the under-23 team, K. Rajagopal duty with the under-23 ended when he was replaced by the under-21 team coach, Ong Kim Swee. However, K. Rajagopal is still in charge of the senior team. Ong Kim Swee first duty with the under-23 were two international friendly matches against Thailand under-23 and Singapore under-23. Malaysia Under-23 lost narrowly 2-1 to Thailand U-23 and won 2-0 against Singapore Under-23.
