The entire executive committee of Malaysia’s football association resigned on Wednesday, the latest blow in a damaging eligibility row over forged documents used to field foreign-born players in Asian Cup qualifiers.

“The resignations are to safeguard the reputation and institutional interests of (the association) and to mitigate the risk of further adverse consequences that could affect Malaysian football as a whole,” acting president Yusoff Mahadi told reporters.

The International Football Federation (FIFA) suspended seven foreign-born players for a year in September and fined the Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) $400,000 for submitting false documents claiming they had Malaysian ancestry.

Football’s global governing body had launched a probe after receiving a complaint following Malaysia’s 4-0 thrashing of Vietnam in a June Asian Cup qualifier.

FAM appealed the sanctions, but a FIFA committee rejected it and issued a scathing report slamming the association for “not taking any discernible disciplinary action.”

It ordered a full probe into FAM’s conduct and governance.

FAM has since appealed to the Court of Arbitration for Sport in Switzerland, where the case is pending.

Wednesday’s resignations will “provide the appropriate space for FIFA and the Asian Football Confederation to independently assess, review, and, where necessary, address governance, administrative, and procedural matters within FAM,” Yusoff said.