Tunku Ismail Idris

Major General Tunku Ismail ibni Sultan Ibrahim (تونكو إسماعيل ابن سلطان إبراهيم; born 30 June 1984) is a member of the Johor royal family who is the Regent (Pemangku Sultan) and Crown Prince (Tunku Mahkota) of Johor as well as the heir apparent to the throne of Johor.

He is the eldest son of Sultan Ibrahim and the Permaisuri of Johor Raja Zarith Sofiah.

He is also the grandson of both Sultan Iskandar of Johor and Sultan Idris Shah II of Perak.

He became the Regent of Johor upon the accession of his father to the throne as the 17th Yang di-Pertuan Agong of Malaysia on 31 January 2024.

He was officially proclaimed the Regent of Johor on 28 January 2024.

He is also a half third cousin of Sultan Nazrin Shah, the current Sultan of Perak since both share a common male ancestor Idris Shah I of Perak.

He subsequently received lower secondary education at the Australian International School in Singapore and continued with his higher secondary studies at Hale School in Perth, Western Australia, until 2002.

Tunku Ismail is the eldest among six siblings.

Like his father, Tunku Ismail has no tertiary (academic) qualification.

In July 2003, he enrolled as a cadet officer in the Indian Military Academy (IMA), India's premier military training school located at Dehradun.

He was bestowed the Best in Riding award among IMA cadets between 2003 and 2004.

He is also a polo player for his regiment and has won many trophies.

In football, he is the owner of Johor Darul Ta'zim F.C..

The prince is also a sports car enthusiast.

All of his cars are registered under the same licence plate of "TMJ", an abbreviation from the title Tunku Mahkota Johor which is also his nickname as addressed informally by Malaysians within and outside Johor.

He was commissioned as a lieutenant in December 2004 and absorbed into the Indian Army.

Tunku Ismail was appointed Raja Muda (literally means "Younger King", but taken to mean as second heir apparent or son of the Crown Prince) on 8 April 2006 by his grandfather, the late Sultan of Johor, and placing him second in line to the throne (Now first in line after the passing of Sultan Iskandar).

He was promoted to the rank of captain in December 2007.

His father and grandfather also had trained at IMA.

The Malaysian prince is the first foreigner to lead a unit of the Indian Army in the Indian Republic Day Parade.

On 26 January 2007, with a rank of captain in Indian Army, he led a mounted column of Jaipur-based 61 Cavalry regiment to salute president of India A. P. J. Abdul Kalam during the Republic Day celebrations.

The president himself chose Tunku Ismail to lead the unit of around 400 men of the world's only non-ceremonial horse-mounted cavalry.

The parade was witnessed by chief guest of the day president of Russia Vladimir Putin and his entourage, along with other dignitaries of Indian politics and military amidst tight security.

Tunku Ismail's father Tunku Ibrahim Ismail flew in from Johor Bahru on 23 January 2007 to be present at the celebrations while his son added a chapter to the history of the Indian Army.

A polo enthusiast, Tunku Ismail is a skilful horse rider.

Tunku Ismail was appointed as the Tunku Mahkota of Johor on 28 January 2010.

Following a family tradition of getting trained in armed forces, with his late grandfather in the Malaysian Army and father in the US Army, Tunku Ismail aspired for a career in the Indian Armed Forces.

He is also a grandnephew as well as nephew by marriage of Al-Sultan Abdullah, the current Sultan of Pahang and an 11th cousin of Tengku Muhammad Ismail, the Crown Prince of Terengganu since they both share a common male ancestor Tun Habib Abdul Majid.

Tunku Ismail completed his early education at Sekolah Sri Utama and Sekolah Rendah Kebangsaan St. Joseph in Johor Bahru.

In 2014, the Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) appointed the Tunku Ismail Sultan Ibrahim as an advisor to the previous FAM president, his uncle, Sultan Abdullah of Pahang.

Tunku Ismail assisted and worked hand in hand with FAM in improving the quality of football within the country, particularly with the national team as well as the junior teams.

As predicted, there were several concerns about the news, particularly with Tunku Ismail having lost the FAM presidency election to Tengku Abdullah earlier that year.

Tunku Ismail's leadership on the club Johor Darul Ta'zim F.C also oversaw its success as the first Southeast Asian club to lift the AFC Cup in 2015.

He is noted for his religious moderation and veiled criticism of more conservative Muslims who denounced him for shaking hands with women in 2016.

On 2 December 2022, Tunku Ismail was installed as the Chancellor of Universiti Tun Hussein Onn Malaysia (UTHM) at the first session of the university’s 22nd convocation at Dewan Sultan Ibrahim.

On 13 December 2023, Tunku Ismail was proclaimed as the Pro Chancellor of Kolej Universiti Islam Johor Sultan Ibrahim (KUIJSI) at the university's 21st convocation at the Johor Persada International Convention Centre.

His Royal Highness the Tunku Mahkota (Crown Prince) of Johor, Tunku Ismail ibni Sultan Ibrahim has been appointed as the President of Johor Football Association (PBNJ).

The EGM held in Johor Bahru saw the Crown Prince appointed as the new president replacing the former, Jais Sarday.

Among his plans to help bring back Johorean football to its former glory, the Crown Prince merged the Johor teams (which previously were Johor FC, MBJB and MP Muar) into only one where all of the players wear the Jengking (Scorpion) Team Jersey.

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