A lofty target
FAM launch road-map in bid to reach Asia’s top five
KUALA LUMPUR: Asia’s top five.
That’s the ambitious target set by the Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) as they launched a 12-year road-map – named F30 – yesterday with an ultimate goal of transforming Malaysia into a force to be reckoned with in the continent and the world by 2030.
The strategic plan under the F30 to make Harimau Malaya roaring again like the good old glory days in the 1970-1980s have been divided into three phases and it will kick off next year with the first four-year phase from 2019-2022.
Under the first phase, the FAM plan to lay a solid foundation from the governance, competitions and human capital developments as well as infrastructure before moving on to the second phase from 2023-2026, where they aim to be an accomplished association at the Asian level.
If all goes well, the third and final phase from 2027-2030 is to bring the national team to greater heights and have a world-class side that Malaysians can be proud of.
FAM certainly meant business as the unveiling of the grand scheme was launched in the presence of two of most powerful men in the world of football – FIFA president Gianni Infantino and Asian Football Confederation (AFC) president Sheikh Salman Ibrahim Al-Khalifa.
In his speech, FAM president Datuk Hamidin Mohd Amin described the project as a national agenda and called on the entire nation to be part of it in order to make it a success.
“The F30 road map is a national agenda. We hope to be in the top five in Asia by 2030,” said Hamidin.
“It’s an agenda for all of us, for me, for FAM, for the stakeholders and fans.
“If we want to realise this vision, we’ll have to ensure the participation of all parties in reaching this common objective.”
The initiative could not have come at a better time as the national team have been struggling to impress on the international stage.
Malaysia failed to build on their 2009 SEA Games gold medal and 2010 AFF Cup success and are currently lying low in the 169th position in the world and 35th in Asia.
Hamidin said the launch of F30 road map reflected FAM’s seriousness in addressing Malaysian football’s dwindling fortunes by going back to the drawing board and fixing the fundamentals.
“The 12-year period is a realistic target taking into consideration the local football ecosystem at its current state,” said Hamidin.
“The core of this road map is to empower the affiliates, to introduce the Malaysian football DNA through uniform coaching curriculum and strong grassroots development.
“FAM, too, intend to create a group of professional referees aimed at improving the quality of the refereeing.”