The Malta national football team (Maltese: Tim nazzjonali tal-futbol ta' Malta) 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.
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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.
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.
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.
Win
Draw
Loss
Fixture
Coaching staff
As of 13 December 2024.
Coaching history
As of 21 November 2023.
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 1 October 2026, after the game against Gibraltar.
Recent call-ups
The following players have been called up within the last 12 months.
Player records
As of 1 October 2026.
Players in bold are still active with Malta.
Competitive record
Head-to-head record
As of 1 October 2026.
Positive record
Neutral record
Negative record
FIFA rankings
As of 10 February 2022
Honours
Friendly
Malta International Football Tournament
Champions (2): 1992, 2002