KUALA LUMPUR – The Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) should be setting standards in Asian football rather than following the example of other nations, says Asian Football Confederation (AFC) secretary-general Datuk Seri Windsor Paul John.
Windsor said Malaysia was once regarded as a reference point in regional football development, revealing that Japan had previously studied the Malaysian football model during the early stages of its transformation into a professional football nation.
Speaking in Scoop’s Sport Check episode, Windsor said Malaysia must now focus on rebuilding its football structures if it is to regain its position as a leading football nation in Asia.
“FAM should be setting standards, not following others. That is the reality,” he said.
He added that Malaysia had once been seen as a model in the region during the early development of professional football systems.
“Japan looked at us in 1982. They came here to study how we ran football in Malaysia and how we started our professional league structure,” he said.
Windsor said Malaysia’s early football framework had been influential at the time, when several Asian nations were beginning to transition towards professional league systems.
However, he noted that Japan’s subsequent reforms and long-term planning allowed it to overtake many regional peers, including Malaysia.
“At that time, we were ahead in certain areas. We had systems that others wanted to learn from,” he said.
“Japan studied Malaysia’s football blueprint as part of their early development phase, particularly in understanding league structures and administrative frameworks.
“But over time, those advantages were not built on. Others moved forward, they improved, they invested, they restructured. And somewhere along the way, we lost that momentum.”
Windsor said the shift highlighted the importance of continuous reform and adaptation in football governance, stressing that Malaysia must now prioritise rebuilding its foundations.
“Those things were all there, but along the way it just went away. Now we need to reset, rebuild. This is the time for FAM to really look at itself and say: where do we want to be in the next 10 to 20 years?” he said.
He added that the AFC’s governance audit of FAM was intended to support that rebuilding process by identifying weaknesses and recommending structural improvements aligned with modern football standards.
“The idea is not just to identify problems. It is to help build something better. You cannot keep operating with old structures and expect new results. At some point, you have to change the system itself,” he said.
Windsor said the reforms being proposed would allow FAM to potentially regain its position as a reference point in Asian football governance if implemented effectively.
“If we do this properly, FAM can become a reference again. Not just a member association that follows what others are doing, but one that actually sets examples for others to follow,” he said.
The AFC-led audit, presented during FAM’s extraordinary congress last week, identified a range of governance and administrative weaknesses and recommended reforms aimed at modernising the association’s structure and decision-making processes.
The review was initiated after FAM sought assistance from AFC and FIFA following the fallout from the heritage player controversy, which led to sanctions and intensified scrutiny of its governance framework.
For Windsor, the message is clear: Malaysia must rediscover its ambition in football administration and once again aim to lead rather than follow.
“It is about mindset as much as structure,” he said.
“If you want to be a leading football nation, you cannot always be in a position where you are learning from others. At some point, you must be the one others learn from.” – June 14, 2026