The Malta national football team () represents Malta in men's international football and is controlled by the Malta Football Association, the governing body for football in Malta.
The first official game played by Malta was a 3–2 defeat in a friendly against Austria in 1957. Their competitive debut arrived five years later, playing against Denmark in the preliminary round of the 1964 European Nations' Cup. Malta have competed in every qualifier for the European Championship since 1964 (except 1968) and FIFA World Cup since 1974, but have never made it to any finals of all major international competition.
History
Malta played its first international game on 24 February 1957 at the Empire Stadium, losing 3-2 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. 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 remained 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. 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.
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. 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. 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. 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.
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. On 8 September 2007, Malta managed another draw against Turkey in a Euro 2008 qualifying match, the game finishing 2–2. 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. A 2–0 friendly win over Georgia followed in 2009.
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. One month later, however, the side had fallen to their lowest ever FIFA world ranking position, of 169th in the world. 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 Macedonia in a friendly game, with Michael Mifsud scoring a brilliant diving header for Malta.
In February 2011, the national football team of Malta achieved a 0–0 draw against Switzerland, in which goalkeeper Justin Haber saved two penalties. 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. 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. In June 2017, Malta defeated Ukraine 1–0 in a friendly match, thanks to a lone goal by defender Zach Muscat. Malta recorded their 7th all-time competitive win (and their first in the UEFA Nations League) on 13 October 2020, defeating Latvia 1–0 in Riga, scoring the winning goal in the 97th minute.
Malta went on to deliver several good performances in the times that followed. On 14 November 2020 in the UEFA Nations League, Malta earned a 3–1 home victory against Faroe Islands, thanks in part to a great goal from Jurgen Degabriele, showcasing early signs of momentum in the 2020–21 campaign. In 2021, Malta recorded a standout result in FIFA World Cup qualifying with a comfortable 3–0 home win over Cyprus on 1 September 2021, featuring two goals from Cain Attard, a rare competitive triumph that boosted morale in a challenging Group H campaign. The 2022 calendar year proved to be Malta's most successful in recent times: across ten matches they achieved 5 wins, 1 draw and 4 losses, scoring 12 goals and conceding 9, marking an uptick in form. On 5 June 2022, they opened the 2022–23 UEFA Nations League with a 2–0 away win over San Marino, with Matthew Guillaumier scoring Malta’s opener in Serravalle and setting a confident tone for the campaign. In September 2022, Malta delivered perhaps their most celebrated recent result: a 2–1 friendly victory over Israel at Ta’ Qali National Stadium, with goals by Alexander Satariano (84') and Ferdinando Apap (87'), overturning Israel’s early penalty to secure the win against a traditionally stronger side.
In more recent years, Malta did achieve a handful of positive results. In June 2023 (UEFA Nations League 2022–23, Group D2), Malta earned a 2–0 away win over San Marino on 5 June, followed by a 1–0 home victory against San Marino on 12 June, anchoring a strong run in their Group D2 campaign and finishing second overall in the group. In September 2024, during the 2024–25 UEFA Nations League, Malta beat Moldova 2–0 away on 7 September and then overcame Andorra 1–0 away on 10 September, with the goal against Andorra scored by Ryan Camenzuli in the 44th minute. Although positive results have been harder to come by for Malta during 2024 and 2025, they did get another competitive win, securing a 1–0 home win against Moldova on 13 October 2024, courtesy of an 87th‑minute penalty from Teuma, again in UEFA Nations League Group D2. Moving into 2025 World Cup qualifying, Malta registered a 0–0 draw at home against Lithuania on 7 June 2025, showing resilience at Ta’ Qali despite admittedly tougher opposition. On 14 November 2025, in their penultimate match of FIFA World Cup Qualification, Malta caused one of the greatest ever World Cup Qualifying upsets in a 1-0 away victory over highly-favoured Finland in Helsinki. After the match, Maltese goalkeeper Henry Bonello was given praise for his "unbeatable" performance, which included nine saves.
Team Image
Stadium
Malta's spiritual home is the National Stadium, the largest stadium in Malta. The highest ever attendance for Malta's matches at Ta Qali was in a 1986 World Cup qualifier against West Germany, where 35,102 spectators turned up for the match.
Before Ta' Qali, Malta used to play its home matches at the Empire Stadium, which was infamous for its hard surface. The record attendance at the Empire Stadium was 29,751, in a 1972 UEFA Euro qualifier against England.
Malta also played friendly matches at the Hibernians Stadium, Marsa Stadium and Manoel Island Football Ground.
Kits
Kit provider Period Adidas1978–1988 Umbro1988–1990 Lotto1990–1999 Kronos1999–2001 Erreà2001–2005 Diadora2005–2009 Givova2009–2022 Erreà2022–2026 Adidas2026–
Supporters
The South End Core is a non-profit football supporters' association for the Maltese national football team and other disciplines, including rugby union and water polo. The South End Core was founded in 2007 and derives its name from the fact that originally they used to occupy the South Stand of the National Stadium.
Results and fixtures
The following is a list of match results in the last 12 months, as well as any future matches that have been scheduled.
2025
2026
Coaching staff
Head coach Emilio De LeoAssistant coach Mirko Valdifiori Goalkeeping coach Mario Capece Technical coordinator Ivan WoodsFitness coaches Luca Pagani Francesco Zanasi Match analyst Facundo Styk Team manager Keith Fenech
Coaching history
ManagerMalta careerPlayedWonDrawnLostWin % 1954–1961 1961–1964 1966 1966 1969 1970 1973 1974–1976 John1976–1978 1978–1983 1984–1987 1988–1991 1991–1993 1993–1995 1996 1996–1997 1997–2001 2001–2003 2003–2006 2006–2009 2009–2011 2012 2012–2017 2017–2018 2018–2019 2019–2022 2022 2023–2024 2024 2025–
Players Current squad The following players were called-up to the squad for the UEFA Nations League games against Andorra and Gibraltar between 24 September and 4 October 2026, and the friendly game against Liechtenstein on 27 September 2026.
Caps and goals correct as of 4 October 2026, after the game against Andorra.
Recent call-ups The following players have been called up within the last 12 months.
INJ Player is injured COV Withdrew due to covid PRE Preliminary squad / standby RET Retired from the national team SUS Serving suspension WD Player withdrew from the squad due to non-injury issue.
Player records
Players in bold are still active with Malta.
Most capped players
RankNameCapsGoalsCareer1Michael Mifsud143422000–20202David Carabott122111987–20053Gilbert Agius12081993–20094Carmel Busuttil113231982–20015Andrei Agius10362006–2022Joe Brincat10361987–20047Roderick Briffa10012003–20188John Buttigieg9711984–20009André Schembri9432006–201810Brian Said9151996–2009
Top goalscorers
RankNameGoalsCapsAverageCareer1Michael Mifsud421432000–20202Carmel Busuttil231131982–20013David Carabott111221987–20054Hubert Suda8711988–2001Gilbert Agius81201993–20096Jurgen Degabriele7302018–presentTeddy Teuma7542020–8Raymond Xuereb6451971–1985Kristian Laferla6651986–1998Joseph Mbong6772018–Andrei Agius61032006–2022Joe Brincat61031987–2004
Competitive record FIFA World Cup
FIFA World Cup recordQualification recordYearRoundPosition 1930 to 1958Not a FIFA memberNot a FIFA member 1962 to 1970Did not enterDid not enter 1974Did not qualify6006120 19786006027 19824004215 19868017625 19908026318 199410118323 1998100010237 200210019424 200610037432 201010019026 201410109528 201810019325 202210127930 20268125419 2030To be determinedTo be determined 2034Total12041410246349
UEFA European Championship