Malta national football team

Malta played its first international game on 24 February 1957 at the Empire Stadium, losing 2–3 to Austria. That match was played in front of a capacity crowd at the old Empire Stadium. The Malta Football Association joined FIFA in 1959 and UEFA a year later. However, in late 1959, Malta played in the 1960 Summer Olympics African Qualifiers against Morocco and Tunisia, in which they finished last in the group with two draws and two losses. Since then, Malta has largely maintained the status as one of Europe's weakest teams, though its fortunes have increased since late 2010s.

The Maltese international side first competed in the qualifying rounds of the UEFA European Nations Cup in 1962, and in FIFA World Cup qualification in 1971.[5] Malta's first competitive draw ended 1–1 against Greece in 1970. Malta's first two competitive wins were victories of 2–0 and 2–1 at home to Greece and Iceland in European Championship qualifiers in 1975 and 1982 respectively. In 1979, Malta drew 0–0 with West Germany in a European championship qualifier and they met again on 16 December 1984 for a memorable World Cup Qualifier in front of a record attendance at the Ta'Qali stadium, where the 1982 & eventual 1986 World Cup runners-up only managed a 2–3 win. Another prestigious result was achieved in March 1987 when Malta drew 2–2 in Portugal, in a qualifier for Euro'88 and the side also twice drew against Hungary during the qualification for the 1990 FIFA World Cup, and recorded four friendly wins during 1991 and 1992.[3]

Malta's third competitive win came with a 1–0 victory away to Estonia in a 1993 World Cup qualifier in which Kris Laferla scored.[6] In October 1994 Malta held Czech Republic 0–0 in a qualifier for the UEFA Euro 1996, in which the latter ended runners-up. Six years later, in October 2000, in a group qualifying match for the 2002 World Cup, once again Malta managed another 0–0 draw vs Czech Republic which eventually cost the latter a place at the following major tournament. In June 2000, Malta played England, then managed by Kevin Keegan. Trailing 2–1 going into the final minutes, Malta were awarded a penalty, however David Carabott's effort was saved by Richard Wright.[7] Through November 2001 and May 2002, Malta played and remained undefeated in 6 international matches and in between they won the locally hosted (Rothmans) International Tournament. During 2005, Malta drew 1–1 against Croatia and Bulgaria. Another positive result was the 1–1 home draw in a friendly match against Northern Ireland, though George Mallia missed an injury time penalty which would have given them a win.[8] On 11 October 2006, Malta managed another competitive victory, a 2–1 triumph over Hungary in the European Championship qualifying with André Schembri scoring twice.[6]

On 7 February 2007, Malta drew 1–1 with one of the hosts of Euro 2008, Austria. The game was played to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the first international match played by the Maltese national team.[9] On 8 September 2007, Malta managed another draw against Turkey in a Euro 2008 qualifying match, the game finishing 2–2.[10] On 26 March 2008, Malta achieved its largest ever victory, a 7–1 defeat of Liechtenstein in a friendly at the Ta' Qali Stadium, with Michael Mifsud scoring five goals.[11] A 2–0 friendly win over Georgia followed in 2009.[12]

In May 2010, sponsorship of the Maltese national side was taken on by sportswear firm Givova, who also designed a range of new kits for the team.[13] One month later, however, the side had fallen to their lowest ever FIFA world ranking position, of 169th in the world.[12] In 2009, Malta had a 0–0 draw with Albania at home. This was their only point for the 2010 World Cup qualifying. On 11 August 2010, Malta drew 1–1 at home against FYR Macedonia in a friendly game, with Michael Mifsud scoring a brilliant diving header for Malta.[14]

In February 2011, the national football team of Malta achieved a 0–0 draw against Switzerland, in which goalkeeper Justin Haber saved two penalties.[12] On 6 September 2011, Malta won their first Euro 2012 qualifying point, with a 1–1 draw against Georgia. During the years of 2010 and 2011, Malta did not get many positive results, and coach John Buttigieg and assistant coach Carmel Busittil were both sacked in October 2011.[15] For the 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification campaign, Malta won their first World Cup qualifying match in 20 years, nabbing a 1–0 win over Armenia in June 2013.[16][13] In June 2017, Malta defeated Ukraine 1–0 in a friendly match, thanks to a lone goal by defender Zach Muscat.[17] Malta recorded their 7th all-time competitive win (and their first in the UEFA Nations League) on October 13, 2020, defeating Latvia 1–0 in Riga, scoring the winning goal in the 97th minute.

The following is a list of match results in the last 12 months, as well as any future matches that have been scheduled.

  Win   Draw   Loss   Fixture

2022

Malta  v  Greece

17 November Friendly	Malta	2–2	Greece	Ta' Qali, Malta
18:00 UTC+01:00	Degabriele 55' Teuma 67' (pen.)	Report	Bakasetas 39' Fountas 86'	Stadium: National Stadium Referee: Alain Durieux (Luxembourg)

Malta  v  Republic of Ireland

20 November Friendly	Malta	0–1	Republic of Ireland	Ta' Qali, Malta
20:00 UTC+01:00		Report	Robinson 55'	Stadium: National Stadium Referee: Chrysovalantis Theouli (Cyprus)

2023

North Macedonia  v  Malta

23 March UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying	North Macedonia	2–1	Malta	Skopje, North Macedonia
20:45 UTC+01:00	Elmas 66' Churlinov 72'	Report	Yankam 86'	Stadium: Philip II Arena Attendance: 9,991 Referee: Kristo Tohver (Estonia)

Malta  v  Italy

26 March UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying	Malta	0–2	Italy	Ta' Qali, Malta
20:45 UTC+01:00		Report	Retegui 15' Pessina 27'	Stadium: National Stadium Attendance: 16,015 Referee: Georgi Kabakov (Bulgaria)

Luxembourg  v  Malta

9 June Friendly	Luxembourg	0–1	Malta	Luxembourg City, Luxembourg
20:15 UTC+02:00		Report	Nwoko 64'	Stadium: Stade de Luxembourg Attendance: 4,028 Referee: Eldorjan Hamiti (Albania)

Malta  v  England

16 June UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying	Malta	0–4	England	Ta' Qali, Malta
20:45 UTC+01:00		Report	Apap 9' (o.g.) Alexander-Arnold 28' Kane 31' (pen.) Wilson 83' (pen.)	Stadium: National Stadium Attendance: 16,277 Referee: Igor Pajac (Croatia)

Ukraine  v  Malta

19 June UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying	Ukraine	1–0	Malta	Trnava, Slovakia
20:45 UTC+01:00	Tsyhankov 72' (pen.)	Report		Stadium: Anton Malatinský Stadium Attendance: 7,543 Referee: Ruddy Buquet (France)

Malta  v  Gibraltar

6 September Friendly	Malta	1–0	Gibraltar	Ta' Qali, Malta
20:00 UTC+02:00	Mbong 58'	Report		Stadium: National Stadium

Malta  v  North Macedonia

12 September UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying	Malta	0–2	North Macedonia	Ta' Qali, Malta
20:45 UTC+02:00		Report	Elmas 5' Manev 41'	Stadium: National Stadium Attendance: 3,158 Referee: Henrik Nalbandyan (Armenia)

Italy  v  Malta

14 October UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying	Italy	4–0	Malta	Bari, Italy
20:45 UTC+02:00	Bonaventura 23' Berardi 45+1' 64' Fratessi 90+3+1'	Report		Stadium: Stadio San Nicola Attendance: 56,186 Referee: Duje Strukan (Croatia)

Malta  v  Ukraine

17 October UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying	Malta	1–3	Ukraine	Ta' Qali, Malta
20:45 UTC+02:00	Mbong 12'	Report	Camenzuli 38' (o.g.) Dovbyk 43' (pen.) Mudryk 85'	Stadium: National Stadium Attendance: 3,547 Referee: Morten Krogh (Denmark)

England  v  Malta

17 November UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying	England	v	Malta	London, England
19:45 UTC±00:00		Report		Stadium: Wembley Stadium

As of 7 November 2022[18]

Head coach	Michele Marcolini
Assistant coaches	Davide Mandelli
	Davide Mazzotta
	Piero Panzanaro
Goalkeeping coach	Mario Capece
Technical coordinator	Ivan Woods
Fitness coaches	Luca Pagani
	Francesco Zanasi
Match analyst	Facundo Styk
Team Manager	Keith Fenech

Coaching history

As of 7 September 2023

Manager	Malta career	Played	Won	Drawn	Lost	Win %
Joe A. Griffiths	1957–1961	6	2	2	2	033.3
Carm Borg	1961–1964	9	0	2	7	000.0
Janos Bedl	1966	2	2	0	0	100.0
Tony Formosa[lower-alpha 1]	1966	10	1	1	8	010.0
Joseph Attard	1969	1	0	0	1	000.0
Saviour Cuschieri	1970	1	0	1	0	000.0
Victor Scerri	1973	2	1	0	1	050.0
Terrenzio Polverini	1974–1976	9	1	2	6	011.1
John Calleja	1976–1978	11	2	1	8	018.2
Victor Scerri	1978–1983	26	3	3	20	011.5
Guentcho Dobrev	1984–1987	21	1	4	16	004.8
Horst Heese	1988–1991	36	3	8	25	008.3
Pippo Psaila	1991–1993	17	5	4	8	029.4
Pietro Ghedin	1993–1995	24	4	5	15	016.7
Robert Gatt	1996	3	0	1	2	000.0
Milorad Kosanović	1996–1997	15	0	2	13	000.0
Josif Ilić	1997–2001	41	5	4	32	012.2
Sigfried Held	2001–2003	21	4	5	12	019.0
Horst Heese[lower-alpha 2]	2003–2006	15	1	2	12	006.7
Dušan Fitzel[lower-alpha 2]	2006–2009	34	3	4	27	008.8
John Buttigieg[lower-alpha 2]	2009–2011	21	2	3	16	009.5
Robert Gatt[lower-alpha 3]	2012	1	1	0	0	100.0
Pietro Ghedin	2012–2017	48	7	6	35	014.6
Tom Saintfiet	2017–2018	3	0	0	3	000.0
Ray Farrugia	2018–2019	18	1	4	13	005.6
Devis Mangia	2019–2022	26	9	5	12	034.6
Gilbert Agius[lower-alpha 4]	2022	2	0	1	1	000.0
Michele Marcolini	2023–	6	2	0	4	033.3

1. One match was managed with Janos Bedl
2. Assisted by Carmel Busuttil
3. Managed the team on a one-off basis as caretaker manager
4. Managed the team as caretaker manager

As of 9 June 2023[20]

Players in bold are still active with Malta.

Most capped players

Michael Mifsud is Malta's most capped player and all-time top scorer.

Rank	Name	Caps	Goals	Career
1	Michael Mifsud	143	42	2000–2020
2	David Carabott	122	11	1987–2005
3	Gilbert Agius	120	8	1993–2009
4	Carmel Busuttil	113	23	1982–2001
5	Andrei Agius	103	6	2006–2022
	Joe Brincat	103	6	1987–2004
7	Roderick Briffa	100	1	2003–2018
8	John Buttigieg	97	1	1984–2000
9	André Schembri	94	3	2006–2018
10	Brian Said	91	5	1996–2009

As of 19 October 2023[21][22]

  Positive record   Neutral record   Negative record

Opponent	Confederation	Played	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	% Win
Albania	UEFA	8	1	2	5	3	14	−11	012.50
Algeria	CAF	3	0	1	2	1	3	−2	000.00
Andorra	UEFA	4	1	3	0	5	3	+2	025.00
Angola	CAF	1	0	0	1	1	2	−1	000.00
Armenia	UEFA	6	1	1	4	2	5	−3	016.67
Austria	UEFA	9	0	1	8	5	29	−24	000.00
Azerbaijan	UEFA	9	4	3	2	14	9	+5	044.44
Belarus	UEFA	3	0	1	2	1	4	−3	000.00
Belgium	UEFA	1	1	0	0	1	0	+1	100.00
Bosnia and Herzegovina	UEFA	4	1	0	3	4	9	−5	025.00
Bulgaria	UEFA	13	0	3	10	5	38	−33	000.00
Canada	CONCACAF	2	2	0	0	4	1	+3	100.00
Cape Verde	CAF	1	0	0	1	0	2	−2	000.00
Central African Republic	CAF	1	1	0	0	2	1	+1	100.00
Croatia	UEFA	10	0	1	9	5	29	−24	000.00
Cyprus	UEFA	8	2	3	3	9	10	−1	025.00
Czech Republic[lower-alpha 1]	UEFA	12	0	3	9	5	34	−29	000.00
Denmark	UEFA	9	0	0	9	4	32	−28	000.00
East Germany	UEFA	6	0	0	6	2	22	−20	000.00
Egypt	CAF	2	0	0	2	2	8	−6	000.00
England	UEFA	7	0	0	7	1	20	−19	000.00
Estonia	UEFA	8	2	2	4	10	12	−2	025.00
Faroe Islands	UEFA	10	2	2	6	14	19	−5	020.00
Finland	UEFA	8	1	2	5	5	14	−9	012.50
France	UEFA	2	0	0	2	0	10	−10	000.00
Gabon	CAF	1	1	0	0	2	1	+1	100.00
Georgia	UEFA	9	1	2	6	5	12	−7	011.11
Germany[lower-alpha 2]	UEFA	9	0	1	8	3	38	−35	000.00
Gibraltar	UEFA	3	2	0	1	3	1	+2	066.67
Greece	UEFA	11	1	3	7	7	24	−17	009.09
Hungary	UEFA	12	1	2	9	6	28	−22	008.33
Iceland	UEFA	15	3	1	11	10	33	−23	020.00
Indonesia	AFC	2	2	0	0	4	0	+4	100.00
Israel	UEFA	9	1	2	6	8	17	−9	011.11
Italy	UEFA	14	0	1	13	4	35	−31	000.00
Japan	AFC	1	0	0	1	0	1	−1	000.00
Jordan	AFC	3	2	0	1	5	4	+1	066.67
Kazakhstan	UEFA	1	0	1	0	2	2	+0	000.00
Kosovo	UEFA	3	0	0	3	2	10	−8	000.00
Kuwait	AFC	1	1	0	0	2	0	+2	100.00
Latvia	UEFA	7	3	1	3	5	8	−3	042.86
Lebanon	AFC	2	1	1	0	1	0	+1	050.00
Libya	CAF	9	3	2	4	6	9	−3	033.33
Liechtenstein	UEFA	5	4	1	0	14	3	+11	080.00
Lithuania	UEFA	5	1	2	2	5	8	−3	020.00
Luxembourg	UEFA	7	2	2	3	5	5	+0	028.57
Moldova	UEFA	7	1	3	3	6	7	−1	014.29
Netherlands	UEFA	6	0	0	6	0	28	−28	000.00
North Macedonia	UEFA	8	0	1	7	3	19	−16	000.00
Northern Ireland	UEFA	8	0	2	6	1	14	−13	000.00
Norway	UEFA	12	0	2	10	4	30	−26	000.00
Poland	UEFA	4	0	0	4	0	13	−13	000.00
Portugal	UEFA	10	0	1	9	5	28	−23	000.00
Qatar	AFC	1	1	0	0	2	0	+2	100.00
Republic of Ireland	UEFA	8	0	0	8	2	25	−23	000.00
Romania	UEFA	2	0	0	2	0	5	−5	000.00
Russia	UEFA	3	0	0	3	1	7	−6	000.00
San Marino	UEFA	3	3	0	0	6	2	+4	100.00
Scotland	UEFA	7	0	1	6	5	18	−13	000.00
Serbia[lower-alpha 3]	UEFA	4	0	0	4	1	18	−17	000.00
Slovakia	UEFA	10	0	2	8	5	29	−24	000.00
Slovenia	UEFA	8	0	1	7	1	15	−14	000.00
South Africa	CAF	1	0	0	1	0	1	−1	000.00
South Korea	AFC	2	0	1	1	2	3	−1	000.00
Spain	UEFA	8	0	0	8	3	37	−34	000.00
Sweden	UEFA	13	0	0	13	2	49	−47	000.00
Switzerland	UEFA	7	0	2	5	3	17	−14	000.00
Thailand	AFC	1	1	0	0	2	0	+2	100.00
Tunisia	CAF	11	5	3	3	10	11	−1	045.45
Turkey	UEFA	6	0	1	5	4	15	−11	000.00
Ukraine	UEFA	3	1	0	2	2	4	−2	033.33
United Arab Emirates	AFC	2	0	2	0	1	1	+0	000.00
United States	CONCACAF	1	0	0	1	0	1	−1	000.00
Venezuela	CONMEBOL	1	0	0	1	0	1	−1	000.00
Wales	UEFA	4	0	0	4	2	15	−13	000.00
Total	WORLD	437	60	72	305	280	982	−702	013.73

As of 10 February 2022[23]

Malta International Football Tournament

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Malta national football team.

• Official site of the Malta Football Association
• Malta at UEFA
• Malta at FIFA
• RSSSF archive of results from 1957
• Reports for all matches of the Maltese national football team