Malaysian clubs Kuala Lumpur City (KL City) and Terengganu have been barred by FIFA from registering new players, Dân trí and Bongdaplus reported on 22 October 2026. According to Dân trí, KL City face the heavier sanction, a ban covering three consecutive transfer windows from mid-October, over unpaid money owed to former player Patrick Reichelt. In Terengganu's case, the specific reason has not been made public. It is the same kind of sanction V.League club Thanh Hóa are already under.

Two bans, different levels of clarity

More is known about KL City. Dân trí says Reichelt, a Philippine national of German descent, played for KL City from 2023 and has since returned home to join One Taguig, but the financial dispute between the two sides is unresolved. Bongdaplus says KL City appeared on FIFA's list of clubs under registration bans on 15 October 2026, and cites Malaysian media as saying the club is understood to face a three-window ban over outstanding payments to Reichelt.

For Terengganu, the New Straits Times, as reported by Bongdaplus, says the ban took effect on 14 October 2026 and the club now appears on FIFA's registration list. Bongdaplus stresses that the reason has not been disclosed and that the club, nicknamed The Turtles, has made no official statement; Dân trí also says Terengganu have not explained the ban to the media. According to Dân trí, the club cannot buy or sell players in the January 2027 window, which Bongdaplus says directly threatens coach Nafuzi Zain's plans to strengthen the squad for the second half of the season.

Dân trí describes Terengganu and KL City as two of Malaysia's strongest clubs in recent years, so the bans could hurt their results in the second half of the 2026/27 season.

October timeline

DateEventSource
14 Oct 2026Terengganu ban takes effectNew Straits Times, via Bongdaplus
15 Oct 2026KL City listed among clubs under FIFA registration bansBongdaplus
16 Oct 2026FIFA writes to the VFF asking it to enforce the ban on Thanh HóaBongdaplus
22 Oct 2026Vietnamese media report on the two Malaysian clubsDân trí, Bongdaplus

Thanh Hóa in the same position

According to Bongdaplus, after being ordered by FIFA to pay a large sum over former striker Rimario, Thanh Hóa now face a registration ban over obligations to Matias Belli Moldskred. On 16 October 2026, FIFA disciplinary committee chair Americo Espallargas wrote to the Vietnam Football Federation (VFF) citing decision FPSD-24713 and stating that the club had not fully met its financial obligations to the player. KBVN+ covered the case in Thanh Hóa's new registration ban in the Matias Belli case.

Bongdaplus points to what the cases have in common: clubs lose control of their transfer business and coaches must make do with the players they have, even when the squad has gaps. The outlet calls the run of sanctions a warning about club management in Southeast Asia, from meeting contract obligations to handling disputes. Off-field problems, it adds, can directly hit a club's sporting ambitions, as Vietnamese football has seen with Thanh Hóa.

What comes next

According to Bongdaplus, Terengganu must resolve the issue behind the ban as FIFA requires before it can be lifted, and it is unclear whether they can do so before the January 2027 window. KL City, Bongdaplus says, will find it hard to rebuild while they cannot add players as planned. In Vietnam, Thanh Hóa still need to complete their obligations to Matias Belli Moldskred before they can register new players.