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New Straits Times
22-05-2025
- Sport
- New Straits Times
Three clubs face Super League axe over licensing issue
KUALA LUMPUR: Three Super League clubs — KL City, Kelantan Darul Naim and Police — are in danger of being booted out of the 2025-2026 season. The clubs must submit additional documentation to fulfil financial criteria by May 31. Failure to comply could see their national licences revoked by the Malaysian Football League's (MFL) independent First Instance Body (FIB). In a statement, the FIB announced that eight Super League clubs and two Amateur Football League (AFL) A1 teams have fulfilled all licensing requirements for the upcoming season. FIB licensing committee chairman Sheikh Nasir Sheikh Sharif said the body required additional time to review the documents before making a final decision on May 22. "I would like to congratulate all clubs that successfully obtained the national licence and commend their outstanding efforts in ensuring their applications were approved," he said. To be granted a licence, clubs are assessed on six key criteria outlined in the 2024-2025 edition of the MFL Club Licensing Regulations — sports, infrastructure, personnel and administration, legal, financial, and commercial. The national licence awarded is valid for one season only. Clubs that have secured full licences for the 2025-2026 season are Johor Darul Ta'zim (JDT), Selangor, Penang, Kuching City, Sabah, Terengganu, Sri Pahang and Negri Sembilan. In addition, AFL A1 sides Melaka and Immigration FC have also been granted approval to join the Super League. KL City, Police and Kelantan Darul Naim, who received conditional licences, must now furnish additional documentation. Former M-League champions Perak and Kedah Darul Aman failed to secure licences and will not feature in the Super League next season.
New Straits Times
16-05-2025
- Business
- New Straits Times
FIB flip-flop raises fresh doubts over Super League licensing
KUALA LUMPUR: Just six days after the May 10 deadline for clubs to submit their documents for the 2025-2026 national licence, the Malaysian Football League's (MFL) First Instance Body (FIB) appears to be backpedalling — fast. In a statement released today, FIB chairman Sheikh Nasir Sheikh Sharif said the body is still reviewing documents submitted by clubs, but did not specify which teams had applied or whether all had met the deadline. "The FIB wishes to inform that the document review process for national licence applications submitted by all clubs to compete in the 2025-2026 Super League is ongoing. "The committee requires a bit more time to thoroughly review a total of 387 documents and entries from each Super League club and 98 documents and entries submitted by A1 Semi-Pro League clubs before the May 10 closing date," said Sheikh Nasir in a statement issued by the MFL today. However, the latest statement raises eyebrows as it comes just days after the FIB confidently declared that all Super League teams along with Melaka FC and Immigration FC from the A1 Semi-Pro League had submitted their documents on time. That earlier announcement, made last Sunday, left little room for doubt. "All Super League clubs, including two clubs from the A1 Semi-Pro League, Melaka FC and Immigration FC, have uploaded documents for the 2025-2026 national licence application," the statement read. Yet several teams facing well-known financial issues have openly admitted they were not applying for the licence, leaving many questioning why the FIB claimed otherwise. To further muddy the waters, last weekend's statement noted that the MFL's club licensing unit would be reviewing the documents before handing them over to the FIB for a decision. Today's version makes no mention of the licensing unit, instead suggesting that the FIB is directly handling the entire review process. Another notable shift lies in the wording. Last Sunday's confident use of "all Super League clubs" has now been replaced with "each Super League club" — a subtle but telling change that hints at a retreat from their earlier blanket assurance. "Once all documents have been reviewed, the FIB will make an official announcement on the outcome of the 2025-2026 national licence applications," added Sheikh Nasir. Unlike the earlier statement, which firmly stated that no deadline extensions would be given, today's version offers no clarity on timelines or consequences for non-compliance.
