THERE is still no final word from the Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) regarding the participation of Harimau Malaya in the 2025 Central Asian Football Association (CAFA) Nations Cup.
FAM Competitions Committee deputy chairman, Datuk Zainal Abidin Hassan said the matter is still under discussion and any decision regarding the matter will be announced later.
“If it is good for the national team, then for me it is a good thing that we will participate for the good of football,” he said.
He said this when met by the media at the LALIGA EXTRATIME Malaysia programme here today.
The programme, which is entering its second edition, features two panel sessions that focused on two important topics in Malaysia, namely sports sponsorship and grassroots football.
Previously, a post went viral on social media announcing that Malaysia would be participating in the 2025 CAFA Nations Cup Championship which will also be attended by Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Afghanistan and Iran.
Meanwhile, Zainal Abidin also said that FAM has not yet made a decision on organising 2025 Pestabola Merdeka following the tight tournament schedule involving the national team and the Malaysia League (M-Liga) clubs.
“There is no decision yet but they (the competition committee) will examine all aspects as best as possible before we organise it (Pestabola Merdeka),“ he said.
For the record, Pestabola Merdeka was introduced since 1957 and was once called the Grand Old Lady of Asia because it successfully invited famous teams in its previous glory days.
Malaysia are the defending champion after winning the 43rd edition, defeating Lebanon last year with the national team at that time under Spanish coach, Pau Marti Vincente.
