IT is club licensing period, and the Malaysian Football League (MFL) have reminded M-League teams to settle their salary arrears, if any, as soon as possible.

Those who fail will not be granted a club licence for the 2020 season.

MFL, however, has acknowledged that the number of cases concerning salary arrears has significantly dropped compared to the previous seasons.

It is learnt that Premier League’s Sarawak owe salaries for up to two months, and they will have to clear their arrears by next month to qualify for a club licence to play in the 2022 season.

“We take unpaid salary issues seriously. For instance, Perak did not pay their players accordingly, and we warned them that if salaries were not settled, they would not be able to sign new players during the mid-season transfer window.

“Perak then settled their salary arrears promptly,” said MFL chief executive officer Datuk Ab Ghani Hassan yesterday.

“Under the football club (FC) concept, teams are responsible for their debts. However, we see fewer cases compared to before thanks to the FA to FC conversion initiative.”

Johor Darul Ta’zim (JDT), Melaka United, PJ City, Perak, Kedah, Selangor, Penang, Terengganu, UiTM, KL City and Sarawak United have applied for an Asian Football Confederation (AFC) licence.

While a total of 18 teams have applied for the national-level club licence to play in the 2022 season.