Fourth Division to kick off next year to create bigger talent pool
JOHOR BARU: The Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) are set to introduce fourth division next season following the success of Malaysia’s youth teams.
The national Under-16, Under-19 and Under23 teams have all qualified for the AFC agegroup Championships Finals next year.
FAM president Tunku Ismail Sultan Ibrahim said that the Fourth Division would allow more teams to participate in the league and help create a bigger talent pool for the national team.
The M-League now comprises the top tier Super League, Premier League and FAM Cup.
“I’d like to congratulate the coaches and staff of the Under-16, Under-19 and Under-23 squads for their success in meeting the target of qualifying for major tournaments,” said Tunku Ismail yesterday.
“What I see is that these players need to play in a competitive league instead of sending them abroad just the Harimau Muda team used to. That would only give financial gains to certain individuals.”
About 26 teams will compete in the Fourth Division next season, where each clubs must have at least five Under-19 players on their roster. The top three teams from the Fourth Division will qualify to play in the FA Cup.
Meanwhile the Football Malaysia Limited Liability Partnership (FMLLP) has signed up as a member of the World League Forum (WLF) and this is set to raise the standard of the M-League.
The M-League thus becomes the first Asean and the fourth Asian league after J-League, Saudi Arabia and Qatar to come under the WLF umbrella.
WLF has 30 professional football leagues under it from around the world, including the Bundesliga, English Premier League, La Liga, Serie A and Major League Soccer.
As a member of the WLF, the M-League will have the opportunity to learn from professional football leagues around the world on football and marketing aspects.
“It's an honour for us and it will give us the right exposure in executing our vision to fur- ther improve the M-League and the national team,” said Tunku Ismail, who is also FMLLP chairman, after signing the agreement with WLF secretary general Jerome Perlemuter at a hotel here yesterday.
Tunku Ismail, who is also Johor Darul Ta’zim (JDT) owner, also announced that the club would donate part of their RM1mil reward from the state government to flood victims in Penang.
On Wednesday, the state government announced a contribution of RM1mil to JDT for winning the Malaysia Cup last Saturday.
“The Johor government will also donate to the flood victims in Penang and the club will donate between RM500,000 and RM600,000.
“JDT is more than a football club. We are sincere in wanting to help those in need,” he said.