The suspension of sport activities has put the Maltese national team at a “total disadvantage” when facing foreign opposition, given that in all the rest of Europe football events continued unabated, albeit with no spectators or just a small crowd, Malta Football Association president Bjorn Vassallo said.

Malta’s national football team finds itself in poor fitness due to the suspension of the domestic league, as could be seen in last Saturday’s defeat against Northern Ireland, a match Malta lost 3-0. That competitive football is not being considered as a profession is unacceptable, Vassallo told The Malta Independent.

Malta’s national football team head coach Devis Mangia was the first to comment about lack of fitness, as he was left displeased after the defeat against the Northern Ireland team.

This is as, for the most part, Maltese players have not featured in any fixture in around two months given the ban on competitive sports which was introduced by the health authorities, which saw the premature end of the Maltese football season, and which saw Ħamrun Spartans crowned as champions.

This resulted in the players’ fitness levels during national games not being as sharp as the national team coach would have wanted them to be, and Mangia had already warned that this would happen back in March.

Speaking to Times of Malta after the game against Northern Ireland, the Italian coach said: “I think the moment has come for Maltese football to be treated by the authorities like a profession and not like a hobby.”

The Malta Independent contacted the MFA president to get his views on this issue.

“All of this is a problem which stems from the fact that Malta was the only country in Europe where there was no distinction between elite competitions and the rest,” Vassallo said.

He remarked that although there was an exemption when it comes to international competitions in the legal notice, it “was not enough” since progression of fitness can only be obtained through constant activity.

“One cannot compete at international level properly when no domestic competitions are taking place. It doesn't make any sense because of the physiological demands of the sporting performance at this high-level,” he said.

The MFA president observed that since 8 March, when domestic sports came to an abrupt halt, “most of the players didn’t play a single game... this has impacted their physical fitness, apart from the mental aspect, which when coupled together, leads to lack of concentration, which is needed for good-decision making and to boost the overall self-confidence.”

Going forward, Vassallo said that he hopes that “everyone has more understanding about the negative impact of these decisions on professional athletes.”

“Our team still lags behind a lot in terms of fitness because of this and there is important work to do if the team needs to be fully prepared and on the same levels as our opponents for the next World Cup qualifiers in September.”

The match against Northern Ireland was a friendly international played during a training camp in Austria. Malta will play a second game with Kosovo on Friday while a third match against Kazakhstan has been cancelled because of visa issues for the Kazakhs.

The health authorities also decided not to allow children to practice sports until the exam season is over. On this, Vassallo said that it is not right that "to safeguard one, we are reducing the other" as in a pandemic, the health and emotional effects on children is likewise of utmost relevance.

"So that which is sedentary – sitting down, going to school, to church and to restaurants – is okay. But that which takes place in the open, which has a good impact on children’s mental health and wellbeing as they socialise… (for that) we are waiting for them to finish school. I just don't understand it," Vassallo lamented. 

He also remarked that there are almost 1,000 contracts signed by players and technical staff who earn their bread and butter from their sports profession, and cited an €8 million turnover from the top championship, BOV Premier League, in one season. “So (football) has a strong economy”.

Vassallo remarked that if the country wants to sustain a certain level of football, “authorities need to recognise our work fully – and that is up to the legislators.” He noted that although there were positive aspects during the pandemic, in terms of the Malta Enterprise financial assistance, “obviously one does not compensate for the other”.

He also said that sports infrastructure is likewise an important factor. "The MFA invested a lot in club infrastructure all over the country, and there are also ongoing discussions with the government so that we invest together again in terms of infrastructure, but there is still a great lack of it for the needs arising.”

The MFA president added that everyone involved “needs to be proactive and follow a strategic approach”, something which he remarked the MFA did a few months ago with the introduction of a strategy for Maltese football, carrying a tagline “We Can Perform Better”.

In their strategy stretching from 2020 to 2024, the MFA highlighted a number of points that the football movement is addressing in line with the needs and objective to perform better when it comes to football. These include mainly four pillars: Develop & Grow (Technical), Showcase the Game (Competitions), Govern & Lead (Governance) and Commercial Value (Marketing).

Vassallo remarked that apart from the growth of the game on the pitch, the Malta FA is pushing reforms to review the governance structures with new statutes to come in place this summer, together with the implementation of other governance principles. 

“We are currently undergoing a lot of reformation, and we also have working groups working on this, where we are going to address a number of principles in a holistic reform in governance. This would lead to a change in statute, separation of powers, new licensing criteria, a new code of ethics, introduction of AML frameworks, corporate restructuring for clubs and so forth,” he said.

“The government, however, needs to recognise that sports contribute a lot to the aforementioned elements, while the National Sports Associations and Sport Malta have the obligation to safeguard their position in order to be more streamlined in terms of governance more than ever before, such as in the enhancement of transparency and accountability and the promotion of ethical values.”