Full name | Valletta Football Club | ||
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Nickname(s) | Lilywhites Tal-Palestina Citizens [1] | ||
Founded | 1943 | ||
Chairman | Alexander Fenech | ||
Manager | Juan Cruz Gill (Caretaker) | ||
League | Maltese Premier League | ||
2023–24 | Maltese Premier League, 12th (relegated) | ||
Website | Club website | ||
Valletta F.C. is a professional football club based in Valletta, the capital city of Malta, and will compete in the Maltese Challenge League, the Maltese second division following their relegation from the Maltese Premier League for the first time in their history in the 2023/24 season. [2] The club was founded in 1943 after a merge of Valletta Prestons, Valletta St. Paul's and Valletta United, the latter being a two-time league winner before the Second World War.
Considered one of the most supported and successful clubs in Maltese football, [3] the club has won 25 league titles, 14 FA Trophies and a record 13 Super Cups.
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There is no clear evidence on when Valletta F.C. started, hence the fact that Valletta possessed two clubs at that era. The foundation of Valletta F.C. was laid with the creation of the Valletta United team. Valletta United was known as the "team of the square" since the club was located in St. George's Square. Valletta United represented the city from 1904 to 1932.
The city of Valletta in Malta has a long footballing history, between 1886 and 1919 at some point or another, around fourteen teams had competed representing the city. Amongst these early teams included the popular Boys Empire League, Valletta College, St. George's Square, Dockyard Albion and Malta Athletic Club.
An early step in the history of the current club was the founding of Valletta United Football Club in 1903 by local youngsters. Despite their enthusiasm for the game which had been brought to the island by the British, the youngsters had a rough start with limited supplies. They cut their white trousers into long shorts and dyed their shirts into that of the club colours (brown, with yellow sleeves) for their uniforms.
The Ditch at Porte des Bombes, which itself had been the scene of the first ever recorded Maltese football match in 1886, was chosen to host Valletta United's first match on 9 January 1904. [4] United faced off against a team from the Collegiate School and won 1–0 with a strike from a forward named L. Agius. The full Valletta United team that day included; [4]
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The club soon found a more permanent home at St. George's Square, just opposite the Grandmaster's Palace in Valletta; they gained the nickname "the team of the square" because of this. Valletta first gained silverware during the 1914–15 season, when they won both the Cousis Shield and the Maltese League championship, it was only the fifth season the league had been competed in Malta.
Much of Maltese football was dominated by Floriana and Sliema Wanderers up until the Second World War, Valletta attempted to upset the status quo several times; they won the Cousis Shield for the second time in 1920–21 and finished as runners-up in the Maltese League during both 1925–26 and 1926–27. During their last season, Valletta United upset the two main clubs in Malta of the time, by winning the Maltese League in 1931–32, however they did not enter the following season.
Although Sliema and Floriana dominated the local scene in those times, by winning these trophies it was Valletta United that started to break into this duopoly and induce greater competition. Valletta United were very active in the Championship of the first division and in fact played 97 games.
During the period that Valletta United played within the Malta Football Association (i.e., from 1909 to 1932), Valletta United won the championship in 1931–32. However, for some reason in the following season, Valletta United disappeared from the football scene and thus the monopoly of Sliema and Floriana football clubs recommenced.
Valletta United was not the only team from the city that played in the highest Division of the M.F.A. In the 1925–26 and the 1926–27 seasons there were Valletta Rovers who played in the highest Division of the M.F.A., then in the season 1937–38 and 1938–39 there was Valletta City.
In 1996–97 Valletta F.C. won all five competitions that the Maltese football offers. This was done by succeeding to win the Premier League, Rothmans Trophy, Super Five Cup, Lowenbrau Cup and Super Cup.
In the season 2000–01, Valletta F.C. succeeded in breaking their own record from 1996 to 1997. This time they won the six competitions offered by the M.F.A. This particular season there was an additional one, namely the Centenary Cup. It had been added to celebrate the 100th Anniversary of the M.F.A.
Hope for their first trophy in seven years was a huge thought running through Valletta fans in the summer of 2007. Valletta spent a lot of money in the transfer market and expectations were high. Valletta began the season in the worst possible fashion, with a 3–2 defeat to Eternal rivals, Floriana. Valletta's poor start continued with a 1–1 draw against Hibernians, defeat to Sliema, a 0–0 draw with Hamrun Spartans and Msida respectively. However, eventually Valletta hit good form with a 1–0 win over Birkirkara, a 7–0 trashing over champions Marsaxlokk and they gained revenge over Floriana with a 4–0 win on 8 December. After wins over Msida, Mqabba, Hamrun, Sliema and Marsaxlokk the club showed its winning pedigree. Valletta headed to the final round of the season on a high note.
Valletta won their 19th Premier League title after Marsaxlokk failed to beat Birkirkara on Saturday 3 May after a very successful Championship Pool campaign. However, with the title in the bag the long unbeaten streak soon came to an end, and the season ended with a number of defeats. The team also failed to reach the U*Bet F.A. Trophy 2008 final, after losing 4–2 to rivals Birkirkara in the semi-final. But except for the early stages and the post-championship games, Valletta had been the most consistent side.
Valletta won the 2010–11 BOV Premier League as an unbeaten team which brought the 20th title to Valletta FC's history.
Valletta won The 2011–12 BOV Premier League with two matches still to go after beating Sliema Wanderers 3–0, this was the 21st title in the history of Valletta.
They won three cups out of four cups in the domestic league: The 2011–12 BOV Premier League, The 2011–12 Maltese Super Cup, and the Euro Challenge Cup. They were champions of Malta again in 2013-14, 2015-16 and 2 year in a row 2017-18 and 2018-19 for a total of 25 titles
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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Position [5] | Staff |
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Manager (Caretaker) | Juan Cruz Gill |
Assistant Manager | Jesmond Zerafa |
Goalkeeping coach | Romeo Schembri |
Team manager | Gerard Ellul |
Training assistant | Jason Galea Lucas |
Physical trainer | Karl Sciortino |
Physio | Oscar Alonso |
Kit manager | Clint Mizzi |
Dates [7] | Name |
---|---|
1949–1950 | Harry Tedder |
1958–1959 | Jock Gilmour |
1959–1960 | William Dingwall |
1962–1964 | Carm Borg |
1968–1970 | Tony Formosa |
1970–1972 | Josie Urpani |
1973–1975 | Tony Formosa |
1976–1977 | Terenzio Polverini |
1977–1978 | Lolly Debattista |
1978–1982 | John Calleja |
1982–1984 | Joe Cilia |
1986–1988 | Tony Formosa Joe Micallef |
1989–1990 | George Busuttil |
1989–1990 | Eddie Vella |
1991–1993 | Tony Euchar Grech |
1993–1994 | Lawrence Borg |
1994–1995 | Joe Cilia Edward Aquilina |
1995–1998 | Edward Aquilina |
1998–2001 | Krasimir Manolov |
2001–2002 | Georgi Deanov |
2003–2004 | Atanas Marinov |
2004–2005 | J.J. Aquilina |
2004–2009 | Paul Zammit |
2009–2010 | Ton Caanen |
2010–2012 | Jesmond Zerafa |
2012–2013 | Mark Miller |
2014 | André Paus |
2014–2015 | Gilbert Agius Ivan Zammit |
2015–2017 | Paul Zammit |
2015–2017 | Zoran Popović |
2017– 2019 | Danilo Dončić |
2019 | Gilbert Agius (Caretaker) |
2019–2020 | Darren Abdilla [8] |
2020 | Giovanni Tedesco [9] |
2020 | Jesmond Zerafa [10] |
2020 | Gilbert Agius (Caretaker) [11] |
2020-2022 | Tozé Mendes [12] |
2022 | Danilo Dončić [13] |
2022-2023 | Thane Micallef |
2023-2024 | Enzo Potenza |
2024- | Juan Cruz Gill (Caretaker) |
Competition | Played | Won | Drew | Lost | GF | GA | GD | Win% |
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European Cup / Champions League | 45 | 8 | 6 | 31 | 37 | 112 | −75 | 17.78 |
Cup Winners' Cup | 14 | 0 | 2 | 12 | 6 | 54 | −48 | 0.00 |
UEFA Cup / UEFA Europa League | 36 | 5 | 7 | 24 | 35 | 80 | −45 | 13.89 |
UEFA Intertoto Cup | 4 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 9 | −6 | 0.00 |
Total | 99 | 13 | 17 | 69 | 75 | 255 | −180 | 13.13 |
Legend: GF = Goals For. GA = Goals Against. GD = Goal Difference.
Competition | Titles | Seasons |
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Maltese Premier League | 25 | 1914–15, [lower-alpha 1] 1931–32, [lower-alpha 1] 1944–45, 1945–46, 1947–48, 1958–59, 1959–60, 1962–63, 1973–74, 1977–78, 1979–80, 1983–84, 1989–90, 1991–92, 1996–97, 1997–98, 1998–99, 2000–01, 2007–08, 2010–11, 2011–12, 2013–14, 2015–16, 2017–18, 2018–19 |
Maltese FA Trophy | 14 | 1959–60, 1963–64, 1974–75, 1976–77, 1977–78, 1990–91, 1994–95, 1995–96, 1996–97, 1998–99, 2000–01, 2009–10, 2013–14, 2017–18 |
Maltese Super Cup | 13 | 1990, 1995, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2001, 2008, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2016, 2018, 2019 |
Cassar Cup | 4 | 1943–44, 1958–59, 1965–66, 1967–68 |
Super 5 Lottery Tournament | 4 | 1992–93, 1996–97, 1999–2000, 2000–01 |
Cousis Shield | 2 | 1914–15, 1920–21 |
Scicluna Cup | 2 | 1960–61, 1963–64 |
Independence Cup | 3 | 1974–75, 1979–80, 1980–81 |
Malta Cup | 1 | 1943–44 |
Testaferrata Cup | 1 | 1979–80 |
Centenary Cup | 1 | 2000–01 |
Maltese National League 100 Anniversary Cup | 1 | 2009–10 |
Euro Challenge Cup | 6 | 1983–84, 1987–88, 1989–90, 2011–12, 2013–14, 2014–15 |
Löwenbräu Cup | 6 | 1993–94, 1994–95, 1995–96, 1996–97, 1997–98, 2000–01 |
Coronation Cup | 1 | 1953–54 |
Sons of Malta Cup | 2 | 1974–75, 1978–79 |
Olympic Cup | 1 | 1962–63 |
Melita Cup | 1 | 1911 |
Ranger's Cup | 1 | 1914 |
Poppy Day Fund Cup | 1 | 1960–61 |
BetFair Cup | 1 | 2008 |
Mare Blue Cup | 2 | 2010–11, 2011–12 |
Doubles: League & Trophy in the same season | 8 | 1914–15, 1959–60, 1977–78, 1996–97, 1998–99, 2000–01, 2013–14, 2017–18 |
All Cups in the same season | 3 | 1996–97 (5/5 Cups), 2000–01 (6/6 Cups), 2017–2018 (3/3 Cups) |
Marsaxlokk Football Club is a Maltese professional football club from the town of Marsaxlokk, which currently plays in the BOV Premier League. The club was founded in 1949. Marsaxlokk won the Maltese Premier League title for the first time in their history, after finishing as league champions for the 2006–07 season. Marsaxlokk has its headquarters at Triq il-Kavalleriza, Mxlokk redoubt.
Sliema Wanderers Football Club, nicknamed "tax-Xelin", is a professional Maltese football club. It is the most successful team in Malta and hails from the seaside town of Sliema. It currently plays in the Maltese Premier League.
Floriana Football Club is a Maltese professional football club in the town of Floriana that currently plays in the Maltese Premier League. In all, Floriana F.C. has won 26 national leagues and 21 FA Trophies. It is also the only team from Malta to have qualified from the qualifying rounds to the first round proper of the UEFA Champions League, in the 1993–94 season.
The Maltese Premier League, known as BOV Premier League for sponsorship reasons with Bank of Valletta, is the highest level of professional football in Malta. Managed by the Malta Football Association, the Premier League is contested by 14 teams and operates on a promotion and relegation system with the Challenge League. As of June 2022, the Premier League ranks 46th out of 55 members in the UEFA coefficient. The league was first competed in 1909 as the First Division, before switching to its current name in 1980; the First Division in turn replaced the Second Division. Sliema Wanderers and Floriana have won the title a record 26 times. The current champions are Ħamrun Spartans who won their 10th title in the 2023–24 season.
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The 2006–07 Maltese Premier League was the 27th season of the Maltese Premier League, and the 92nd season of top-level league football in Malta. Marsaxlokk won the title while St. George's and Marsa were relegated to the Maltese First Division.
The 2003–04 Maltese Premier League was the 24th season of the Maltese Premier League, and the 89th season of top-tier football in Malta. The league started on 22 August 2003 and finished on 9 May 2004. Sliema Wanderers successfully defended last season's league triumph, equalling Floriana's league title record of 25 championships.
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The 2007–08 Maltese FA Trophy was the 70th season since its establishment. It featured 20 teams from Maltese Premier League and First Division. The competition started on 3 November 2007 and ended on 24 May 2008 with the final, which Birkirkara F.C. won 2–1 against Hamrun Spartans.
Mark John Miller is an English manager, currently in charge of Żabbar St. Patrick, and former footballer. During his career he played as a midfielder and played in Malta and Finland towards the end of his career.
The 2010–11 Maltese Premier League is the 96th season of the Maltese Premier League, the top-tier football league in Malta. It began in August 2010 and ended in May 2011. Birkirkara are the defending champions, having won their third title last season.
The 2011–12 Maltese Premier League was the 97th season of the Maltese Premier League, the top-tier football league in Malta. It began on 19 August 2011 and it ended in May 2012. Valletta were the defending champions, having won their 20th title last season.
The 2017–18 Maltese Premier League was the 103rd season of top-flight league football in Malta. The season began on 18 August 2017 and ended on 22 April 2018. Hibernians were the defending champions, having won their 12th title the previous season.
The 2017–18 Maltese FA Trophy was the 80th version of the football tournament. It was sponsored by Boost Diesel, which was revealed during the draws of the first, second and third round of the Maltese FA Trophy at the Trophies Lounge in Malta Football Association headquarters in Ta' Qali. A total of sixty–four clubs participated in this season's cup competition.
The 2018–19 Maltese Premier League was the 104th season of top-flight league football in Malta. The season began on 17 August 2018 and ended in April 2019. Defending champions Valletta won their 25th title, following a penalty shootout win against Hibernians in a championship decider match.
The 2019–20 Maltese Premier League was the 105th season of the Maltese Premier League, the top-flight league football in Malta. The fixtures were announced on 2 July 2019; the season started on 23 August 2019 and was scheduled to conclude on 25 April 2020. Valletta were the defending champions, having won their 25th title the previous season.
The 2020–21 Maltese Premier League was the 106th season of the Maltese Premier League, the top-flight league football in Malta. Floriana were the defending champions, having won their 26th title the previous season.
The 2021–22 Maltese FA Trophy, officially named IZIBET FA Trophy due to sponsorship reasons, is the 84th edition of the football cup competition, the FA Trophy. The winners of the Maltese FA Trophy will earn a place in the first qualifying round of the 2022–23 UEFA Europa Conference League. The first round of games started on 7 December 2021.
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