The last few days have witnessed various people commenting in every football quarter about the UEFA Executive Committee elections that took place in Paris last Tuesday. Like many things happening in Malta, even a simple football election stirred up a controversy earlier last January when decisions were taken about the fielding of Malta’s candidate.
UEFA’s Exco elections as they are known, are held every four years and Malta has had the privilege of having its nominee elected for the last 17 years or so. Nearly two generations participating in the highest of football matters for 17 years saw Maltese football benefit if not in results certainly in esteem for its participation on all fronts. Malta was noted and respected, independent of the incumbent.
The decision taken by the new Malta Football Association president, Norman Darmanin Demajo, resoundingly victorious in the August elections, was first to declare that he would not nominate Dr Joseph Mifsud for the post once again. Subsequently, he stood as candidate himself in a stage-managed nomination process, going back on his own public declaration a few weeks before that he was not interested in the post, which raised eyebrows and questions.
Was this a vindictive decision? Was it a question of power? Was it a reasoned decision? Was it a calculated decision? More importantly was it in the interests of Maltese football to do so, a decision which independently minded members of the Council’s Association were meant to consider and decide upon last January when the decision was taken.
I for one was sceptical about such a hasty decision taken by a person a few months into the job and who had long declared that Maltese football required a major overhaul. Yet weeks into the job he was prepared to sacrifice much time to international affairs, even more so when I am informed that he fails to travel with the National Team on a regular basis and has reduced this role to employee status, sending his chief executive officer around Europe with the National Team. It was a decision which the public at large questioned, rightly so, and even more created concern about the possibility of failure and its consequences, a situation which Maltese football has now found itself in.
One questions the savoir-faire of such a decision, the calculation that eliminating Joe Mifsud from the post of vice p0resident of UEFA he held was the major motive, the rest was consider failure including the harm which may ensue to Maltese football.
The hurry to nominate Dede, as he is known in football circles, begs the question: what lies behind it? Seeing that there were seven posts available and that six incumbents had publicly declared that they would seek re election; three or more of them happen to be UEFA vice presidents whose years of service to the game would have left only one position up for grabs. Should the president have gone for it himself or should he have discussed the issue with the man holding the post, Joe Mifsud, and break away from the tradition of infighting and bickering between them. This would have proved the president savvy and meritorious, sending the right message all down the ladder of Maltese football. Unfortunately, only the public saw the writing on the wall.
The results are there for all to see and analyse in a country that does not stop doing so and is in full force on this front with the divorce referendum coming up in eight weeks’ time.
From 53 votes, one vote per European footballing nation, Malta’s president Norman Darmanin Demajo garnered only five votes other than Malta’s vote, quite a few away from the 27 votes needed to get elected on the first run. The six incumbents all got elected as expected. To me this is indicative of Joe Mifsud’s probable result had he been nominated.
The second run for the only remaining post humiliated Maltese football all the more, not to say that it relegated us into oblivion, one of 53 basically and back to being one of the smallest footballing nations. According to UEFA’s official web site uefa.com, Malta’s president Norman Darmanin Demajo garnered only one vote out of a possible 53, Malta’s vote undoubtedly or so we hope.
The public at large and the footballing community will decide whether the outcome was abysmal and a total failure; its impact on football in Malta is yet to be seen. Clearly this seat is now lost for years to come because regaining such a prestigious seat by a small country like Malta will never be easy; great men like His Excellency the President of Malta knows something about it.
The price now paid by Maltese football is high and begs the question − was it worth it? Will president Darmanin Demajo consider his position or that of his advisers in view of this failure? We will never know the underlying motive for such decision but the consequences are known; Malta FA has lost its seat on Europe’s highest footballing committee, UEFA’s Exco – Answers are due to this sport’s faithful followers.
A new dawn was promised last August but such decisions and consequences make local football heading towards sunset; let’s hope that the sun shines and shines as fast as possible. The administration has a lot to do and we hope they get it done and quickly.