‘PLEASE BE SERIOUS’
Clubs told to get national club licences
THE FA of Malaysia (FAM) have told M-League teams to take club licensing seriously and not treat it as a mere “examination” for them to “pass” in order to continue playing.
FAM secretary general Stuart Ramalingam said yesterday clubs who meet the club licensing requirements have become “more stable” than those lacking in this aspect.
The 12-team Super League is in its third year of club licensing while the 12-team Premier League is in its first year.
Stuart said some teams are still not serious about club licensing even when it should be SOP (Standard Operating Procedure).
“They need to take it seriously and not just treat it as an examination for them to pass,” said Stuart.
“There is a difference in (club) stability between those who take it seriously and those who don’t. For the former, there’s no salary arrears issue and they have stability. For those who do not, they are weaker in this sense and their stability is slightly questionable.”
Stuart said there are weaknesses in clubs that need to be improved following the two-day (Sept 26-27)
FAM Club Licensing First Instance Body (FIB) meeting chaired by Sheikh Mohd Nasir Sheikh Mohd Sharif.
Nine teams that played in the 2019 Super League have been granted national club licences for the 2020 season. They are Johor Darul Ta’zim, Kedah, Kuala Lumpur, Perak, Pahang, Selangor, Terengganu, Felda United and PJ City.
Out of the nine, only six (JDT, Kedah, KL, Perak, Selangor and Terengganu) have obtained Asian Football Confederation licences.
Melaka United and PKNS have been given only conditional licences, which means they have until Oct 30 to meet the required criteria, which include stadium safety, a settlement letter from Socso, Employees Provident Fund or Inland Revenue Board.
Failure to do so will result in Melaka United and PKNS being demoted to the Premier League, and their licences may be revoked.
As for Perak SEDC, Stuart said FAM-FIB have turned down their appeal for a licence.
“The committee have decided to reject Perak SEDC’s appeal. They failed to get a national licence after failing to meet the criteria and will be relegated to the 2020 Premier League.
“They have not shown commitment or uploaded any document despite FAM-FIB’s efforts to contact them,” said FAM-FIB chairman Nasir.
Three teams (Negri Sembilan, Sabah and Uitm) of the nine that competed in the 2019 Premier League have met the requirements and granted national club licences for the 2020 season.
Police, Penang and Selangor United have been given conditional licences and if they fail to fulfil the criteria required, they will be demoted to the M3 League.
Nasir said the committee have postponed to Oct 30 on the action to be taken against Premier League teams Kelantan, Sarawak and UKM FC.
“We have decided to show them some leniency as this is the first year for these Premier League teams,” said Nasir.
The FAM-FIB also required clubs to submit a statutory declaration from Socso, EPF or IRB to them latest by Dec 15.
FAM-FIB will visit the clubs and do auditing after Dec 15 to ensure that what is stated in the declaration letter is true for the 2020 M-League season.