Harimau Malaya Shows Stellar Improvement in FIFA World Rankings

BY: Michelle Liew

The excellent performance exhibited by the Harimau Malaya squad gave the team a positive impression to break through to the 120th ranking by the end of this year.

Vice President of the Football Association of Malaysia (FAM), Mohd. Firdaus Mohamed stated that the situation would depend on the result achieved by the team in the friendly match next September.

According to Mohd Firdaus, the Pestabola Merdeka matches in October and two more matches in November may brighten their chances to achieve the team’s dream position.

"In September we will play against the Chinese team in two international competitions. If we can win one match and also bag a positive result at Pestabola Merdeka, of course we can reach the 120th place.

"Even if we win just one of the two friendly matches in September, it will be positive enough to boost our spirits before the kick-off of the Asian Cup," he said.

For the record, the Harimau Malaya squad showed stellar improvement after climbing the table to 136th place based on the update issued by the World Football Federation (FIFA) last Thursday.

It is understood that Malaysia will compete abroad in September before it is scheduled to host the Merdeka Festival in Kuala Lumpur involving a four-cornered competition including India, Palestine and Lebanon.

Then, the national squad will compete its last task of the year this November during the second round of the 2026 World Cup/2027 Asian Cup Qualifiers.