KUALA LUMPUR: M-League clubs will face tighter club licensing regulations in the future as the FA of Malaysia (FAM) look to boost the standards of domestic football.
The regulations will eventually be stricter than the requirements imposed by the Asian Football Con federation (AFC).
At present, FAM's first instance body has a two-tier licensing system, one which meets AFC requirements and one for domestic competitions.
Football Malaysia LLP (FMLLP) chief executive Kevin Ramalingam, however, said the system will eventually be standardised with regulations being stricter than AFC's.
"We are looking beyond AFC. I have always been of the opinion that AFC has to make rules to suit not just Japan and Korea but also Timor Leste. If we follow AFC requirements only, that is just the minimum standard we need to achieve," said Kevin yesterday during a visit to Balai Berita.
"If our target is to meet the minimum standard only, then we are not progressing. Our targets in the long run are to have a licensing system tighter than AFC's.
"Then, any Malaysian team that acquires a licence automatically can compete in AFC competitions. That should be the way forward."
As a step in that direction, FAM have incorporated rules governing commercial activities in club licensing regulations.
"In the first year of club licensing, we introduced a business criteria which AFC does not have because we wanted to develop the commercial side," said Kevin, who added that only half of the 12 Super League teams this year met AFC club licensing regulations.
"In a way we've already started with a few requirements tighter than AFC's but our goal is to make it a lot tighter."
FAM hosted a two-day club licensing seminar which ended in Shah Alam on Tuesday involving 24 Super League and Premier League teams where topics including safety of stadiums, youth development and overdue pay issues were discussed.
Kevin added that it would take five years before Malaysian teams are ready for the tighter regulations.
"To get to the minimum standard of what we want to achieve will take at least five or six years," he said.