Malta national football team

The Malta national football team (Maltese: Tim nazzjonali tal-futbol ta' Malta) represents Malta in international football and is controlled by the Malta Football Association, the governing body for football in Malta.

This article is about the men's team. For the women's team, see Malta women's national football team.

Malta
Nickname(s)Knights of Malta, Ħomor (Reds), Falcons
AssociationMalta Football Association
ConfederationUEFA (Europe)
Head coachDevis Mangia
CaptainMichael Mifsud
Most capsMichael Mifsud (142)
Top scorerMichael Mifsud (41)
Home stadiumTa' Qali Stadium
FIFA codeMLT
First colours
Second colours
FIFA ranking
Current 184 (11 June 2020)[1]
Highest66 (September 1994, September 1995)
Lowest191 (July 2017, September 2017)
Elo ranking
Current 168 5 (2 April 2020)[2]
Highest98 (February 1992)
Lowest168 (20 March 2018)
First international
 Malta 2–3 Austria 
(Gżira, Malta; 24 February 1957)
Biggest win
 Malta 7–1 Liechtenstein 
(Ta' Qali, Malta; 26 March 2008)
Biggest defeat
 Spain 12–1 Malta 
(Seville, Spain; 21 December 1983)

The first official game played by Malta was a 2–3 defeat in a friendly against Austria in 1957.[3] Their competitive debut arrived five years later, playing against Denmark in the preliminary round of the 1964 European Nations' Cup.[4] Since becoming a UEFA member in 1960 and a FIFA member in 1959,[5] Malta have competed in every qualifier for the European Championship and World Cup, without ever making it to the finals of any major international competition.

History

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.

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.[6] 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.[4]

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.[7] 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.[8] 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.[9] 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.[7]

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.[10] On 8 September 2007, Malta managed another draw against Turkey in a Euro 2008 qualifying match, the game finishing 2–2.[11] 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.[12] A 2–0 friendly win over Georgia followed in 2009.[13]

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.[14] One month later, however, the side had fallen to their lowest ever FIFA world ranking position, of 169th in the world.[13] 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.[15]

In February 2011, the side achieved a 0–0 draw against Switzerland, in which goalkeeper Justin Haber saved two penalties.[13] 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.[16] 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.[17] In June 2017, Malta defeated Ukraine 1–0 in a friendly match, thanks to a lone goal by defender Zach Muscat.[18]

Coaching staff
As of 18 February 2020
Assistant Manager Davide Mazzotta
Assistant Manager Guillermo Giacomazzi
Goalkeeping Coach
Physical Trainer

Players

Current squad

The following 23 players were named for the fixtures against Spain and Norway on 15 and 18 November 2019 respectively.[19]
Caps and goals are correct as of 19 November 2019, after the match against Norway .

No. Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Caps Goals Club
16 1GK Justin Haber (1981-06-09) 9 June 1981 54 0 Gżira United
1 1GK Henry Bonello (1988-10-13) 13 October 1988 17 0 Valletta
12 1GK Rashed Al-Tumi (2000-10-14) 14 October 2000 0 0 Valletta
5 2DF Andrei Agius (1986-08-12) 12 August 1986 90 4 Hibernians
4 2DF Steve Borg (1988-05-15) 15 May 1988 48 1 Valletta
2 2DF Jonathan Caruana (1986-07-24) 24 July 1986 44 2 Valletta
22 2DF Zach Muscat (1993-08-22) 22 August 1993 40 1 Olhanense
19 2DF Joseph Zerafa (1988-05-31) 31 May 1988 35 0 Valletta
7 2DF Joseph Mbong (1997-07-15) 15 July 1997 18 0 Hibernians
3 2DF Ferdinando Apap (1992-07-29) 29 July 1992 6 0 Hibernians
15 2DF Karl Micallef (1996-09-08) 8 September 1996 1 0 Ħamrun Spartans
20 2DF Jurgen Pisani (1992-09-03) 3 September 1992 1 0 Floriana
8 3MF Paul Fenech (1986-12-20) 20 December 1986 60 2 Balzan
11 3MF Rowen Muscat (1991-06-05) 5 June 1991 47 1 Valletta
3MF Juan Carlos Corbalan (1997-03-03) 3 March 1997 11 1 Gżira United
6 3MF Jake Grech (1997-11-18) 18 November 1997 8 0 Hibernians
13 3MF Dunstan Vella (1996-04-27) 27 April 1996 7 0 Hibernians
23 3MF Tristan Caruana (1991-09-15) 15 September 1991 3 0 Ħamrun Spartans
14 3MF Brandon Paiber (1995-06-05) 5 June 1995 1 0 Floriana
18 3MF Nikolai Muscat (1996-07-13) 13 July 1996 0 0 Gżira United
9 4FW Michael Mifsud (Captain) (1981-04-17) 17 April 1981 142 41 Birkirkara
17 4FW Alfred Effiong (1984-11-29) 29 November 1984 36 4 Balzan
21 4FW Luke Gambin (1993-03-16) 16 March 1993 22 0 Colchester United
10 4FW Kyrian Nwoko (1997-07-04) 4 July 1997 13 1 Valletta

Recent call-ups

The following players have been called up within the last 12 months.

Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Caps Goals Club Latest call-up
GK Andrew Hogg (1985-03-02) 2 March 1985 67 0 Birkirkara v.  Faroe Islands, 15 October 2019
DF Dexter Xuereb (1997-09-21) 21 September 1997 0 0 Mosta v.  Faroe Islands, 15 October 2019
MF Kurt Shaw (1999-04-01) 1 April 1999 1 0 Sliema Wanderers v.  Faroe Islands, 15 October 2019
FW Jean Paul Farrugia (1992-03-21) 21 March 1992 16 1 Sliema Wanderers v.  Faroe Islands, 15 October 2019

Results and fixtures
Main article: Malta national football team results (2000–19)

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

2019
5 September UEFA Euro 2020 qualifyingNorway 2–0 MaltaOslo, Norway
20:45 (UTC+2) Berge  34'
King  45+1' (pen.)		 Report Stadium: Ullevaal Stadion
Attendance: 11,269
Referee: Dumitri Muntean (Moldova)
8 September UEFA Euro 2020 qualifyingRomania 1–0 MaltaPloiești, Romania
18:00
(19:00 UTC+3)		 Pușcaș  47' Report Stadium: Ilie Oană Stadium
Attendance: 13,376
Referee: Duje Strukan (Croatia)
12 October UEFA Euro 2020 qualifyingMalta 0–4 SwedenTa' Qali, Malta
20:45 (UTC+2) Report Danielson  11'
Se. Larsson  58' (pen.), 71' (pen.)
Agius  66' (o.g.)		 Stadium: National Stadium
Referee: Sergey Ivanov (Russia)
15 October UEFA Euro 2020 qualifyingFaroe Islands 1–0 MaltaTórshavn, Faroe Islands
20:45
(19:45UTC+1)		 Baldvinsson  71' Report Stadium: Tórsvøllur
Referee: José María Sánchez Martínez (Spain)
15 November UEFA Euro 2020 qualifyingSpain 7–0 MaltaCádiz, Spain
20:45 (UTC+1) Morata  23'
Cazorla  41'
Torres  62'
Sarabia  63'
Olmo  69'
Moreno  71'
Navas  85'		 Report Stadium: Ramón de Carranza
Referee: Viktor Kassai (Hungary)
18 November UEFA Euro 2020 qualifyingMalta 1–2 NorwayTa' Qali, Malta
20:45 (UTC+1) Fenech  40' Report King  7'
Sørloth  62'		 Stadium: National Stadium
Referee: Aliyar Aghayev (Azerbaijan)

2020
26 March FriendlyMalta cancelled GibraltarTa' Qali, Malta
19:00 Stadium: National Stadium
TBD FriendlyMalta cancelled Slovenia
Report
TBD FriendlyPortugal cancelled Malta
Report
3 September 2020–21 UEFA Nations LeagueFaroe Islands v MaltaTórshavn, Faroe Islands
19:45 Stadium: Tórsvøllur
6 September 2020–21 UEFA Nations LeagueMalta v LatviaTa' Qali, Malta
20:45 Stadium: National Stadium
9 October 2020–21 UEFA Nations LeagueAndorra v MaltaAndorra la Vella, Andorra
20:45 Stadium: Estadi Nacional
12 October 2020–21 UEFA Nations LeagueLatvia v MaltaRiga, Latvia
21:45 Stadium: Daugava Stadium
14 November 2020–21 UEFA Nations LeagueMalta v AndorraTa' Qali, Malta
15:00 Stadium: National Stadium
17 November 2020–21 UEFA Nations LeagueMalta v Faroe IslandsTa' Qali, Malta
20:45 Stadium: National Stadium

Records
Main articles: List of Malta international footballers and List of Malta national football team captains
As of 18 November 2019[20]

Most capped players

Players in bold are still active, at least at club level.

Striker Michael Mifsud is the most capped player with 142 caps and top goalscorer with 41 goals.

Players with an equal number of caps are ranked in chronological order of reaching the milestone.

# Name Career Caps Goals
1 Michael Mifsud 2000– 142 41
2 David Carabott 1987–2005 122 12
3 Gilbert Agius 1993–2008 120 8
4 Carmel Busuttil 1982–2001 113 23
5 Joe Brincat 1988–2004 101 6
6 Roderick Briffa 2003– 100 1
7 John Buttigieg 1984–2000 97 1
8 Andre Schembri 2006–2018 94 3
9 Brian Said 1996–2009 91 5
10 Silvio Vella 1988–2000 90 1

Top goalscorers

Players in bold are still active, at least at club level.

# Name Career Goals Caps Average
1 Michael Mifsud 2000– 41 142 0.29
2 Carmel Busuttil 1982–2001 23 113 0.21
3 David Carabott 1987–2005 12 122 0.09
4 Hubert Suda 1988–2003 8 70 0.11
Gilbert Agius 1993–2008 8 119 0.07
6 Raymond Xuereb 1971–1985 6 43 0.14
Kristian Laferla 1986–1998 6 65 0.09
Joe Brincat 1988–2004 6 101 0.06
9 George Mallia 1999–2008 5 63 0.08
Andrei Agius 2006– 5 90 0.06
Brian Said 1996–2009 5 91 0.05

Competitive record

FIFA World Cup
FIFA World Cup record FIFA World Cup qualification record
Year Round Position Pld W D L GF GA Pld W D L GF GA
1930 Not a FIFA member Not a FIFA member
1934
1938
1950
1954
1958
1962
1966
1970
1974 Did not qualify 6 0 0 6 1 20
1978 6 0 0 6 0 27
1982 4 0 0 4 2 15
1986 8 0 1 7 6 25
1990 8 0 2 6 3 18
1994 10 1 1 8 3 23
1998 10 0 0 10 2 37
2002 10 0 1 9 4 24
2006 10 0 3 7 4 32
2010 10 0 1 9 0 26
2014 10 1 0 9 5 28
2018 10 0 1 9 3 25
2022 To be determined To be determined
2026
Total 0/21 102 2 10 90 33 300

UEFA European Football Championship
UEFA European Championship record UEFA European Championship qualifying record
Year Round Position Pld W D L GF GA Pld W D L GF GA
1960 Not a UEFA member Not a UEFA member
1964 Did not qualify 2 0 0 2 2 9
1968 Did not enter Did not enter
1972 Did not qualify 6 0 1 5 2 16
1976 6 1 0 5 2 20
1980 6 0 1 5 2 21
1984 8 1 0 7 5 37
1988 8 0 2 6 4 21
1992 8 0 2 6 2 23
1996 10 0 2 8 2 22
2000 8 0 0 8 6 27
2004 8 0 1 7 5 24
2008 12 1 2 9 10 31
2012 10 0 1 9 4 21
2016 10 0 2 8 3 16
2020 10 1 0 9 3 27
2024 To be determined 0 0 0 0 0 0
Total 0/16 106 4 14 94 52 315

UEFA Nations League
UEFA Nations League record
Year Division Round Position Pld W D L GF GA
2018–19 D Group stage 4th 6 0 3 3 5 14
2020–21 To be determined
Total 1/1 6 0 3 3 5 14

Mediterranean Games record
Mediterranean Games record
Year Round GP W D L GS GA
1951-000000
1955-000000
1959-000000
1963-4004418
1967-000000
1971-000000
1975-000000
1979-000000
1983-000000
1987-000000
1991 – present See Malta national under-20 team
Total1/104004418

Other records
Year Position
7th November Cup 19933rd
Total 1 title

All-time team record

As of 18 November 2019 after match against the  Norway[21]

  Positive Record   Neutral Record   Negative Record

  1. Includes matches against  Czechoslovakia.
  2. Includes matches against  West Germany.

Managers

Managerial history
As of 14 October 2018
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[decimal 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[decimal 2] 2003–2006 15 1 2 12 006.7
Dušan Fitzel[decimal 2] 2006–2009 34 3 4 27 008.8
John Buttigieg[decimal 2] 2009–2011 21 2 3 16 009.5
Robert Gatt[decimal 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[22] 2019– 0 0 0 0 !—
  1. 1 match with Janos Bedl
  2. assisted by Carmel Busuttil
  3. managed the team on a one-off basis as caretaker manager

FIFA ranking
Rank Date
Worst Ever Rank 191[13] July 2017, September 2017
Best Ever Rank 66 September 1994, September 1995
Current Rank 184 February 2020

References
  1. "The FIFA/Coca-Cola World Ranking". FIFA. 11 June 2020. Retrieved 11 June 2020.
  2. Elo rankings change compared to one year ago. "World Football Elo Ratings". eloratings.net. 2 April 2020. Retrieved 2 April 2020.
  3. Baldacchino, Carmel (6 February 2007). "Malta's late rally thrills home crowd on debut". Times of Malta. Retrieved 7 October 2018.
  4. "National Team All Time Results". Malta Football Association. Retrieved 2 September 2011.
  5. "Member associations – Malta". UEFA. Retrieved 7 October 2018.
  6. "History of the Malta Football Association". Malta Football Association. Archived from the original on 27 September 2011. Retrieved 28 July 2011.
  7. Brincat, Henry (15 October 2006). "Malta 2–1 Hungary". The Malta Independent. Archived from the original on 9 January 2014. Retrieved 29 July 2011.
  8. "Malta v England: Clockwatch". BBC. 3 June 2000. Retrieved 14 May 2014.
  9. "Malta 1–1 Northern Ireland". BBC. 17 August 2005. Retrieved 15 September 2015.
  10. "Malta to play Euro 2008 co-hosts Austria on 30 May". The Malta Independent. 22 December 2007. Archived from the original on 30 March 2012. Retrieved 2 September 2011.
  11. Huggins, Trevor (9 September 2007). "England notch easy win against Israel". Reuters UK.
  12. "Five-goal Mifsud inspires Malta to massive win". The Times of Malta. 27 March 2008.
  13. "Malta make ground from Swiss denial". fifa.com. 7 April 2011.
  14. "High-profile friendly a useful test – Buttigieg". The Times of Malta. 11 May 2010.
  15. "Malta-Macedonia draw 1–1". The Times of Malta. 11 August 2010.
  16. "Malta fires national coach John Buttigieg". ESPN. 26 October 2011.
  17. Azzopardi, Kevin (7 June 2013). "Resilient Malta stun Armenia". Times of Malta.
  18. "Friendly match: Malta obtains encouraging win against Ukraine". The Malta Independent. 6 June 2017.
  19. "Farrugia selects final squad for Faroe, Spain qualifiers". Malta Football Association. 18 March 2019. Retrieved 18 March 2019.
  20. Mamrud, Roberto. "Malta – Record International Players". RSSSF. Retrieved 8 June 2014.
  21. "World Football Elo Ratings: Malta". Elo Ratings. Retrieved 12 August 2017.
  22. "Devis Mangia appointed national teams' head coach". Times of Malta. 31 December 2019. Retrieved 1 January 2020.
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