The two rugby pitches in Marsa used for domestic matches and national team training are to be passed on to the Malta Rugby Football Union through a management agreement, the Sports Ministry has confirmed with The Malta Independent.

In January Kevin Buttigieg, the president of the Malta Rugby Football Union, stepped down from his post following almost two years at the helm. The reason he gave local media was the lack of progress in talks with the government over the football and rugby stadium that had been approved in 2020. He was pushing for the MRFU to have a bigger use of the facilities.

Buttigieg had told Times of Malta that the MRFU deserved more respect and that he was asking for the sport to have proper facilities like any other discipline in Malta. “For many years we have been given a lot of promises but nothing materialised,” Buttigieg reportedly said.

“The MRFU was more interested to have its own premises in Marsa which is what we were mainly negotiating.” He had said that Marsa is the home of rugby union and that they were negotiating Pitches 1 and 3.

The Malta Independent sent questions to the government, asking whether it intends to give the MRFU its own premises in Marsa, among other things.

In response, a spokesperson for the Sports Ministry said: “A substantial part of the newly restored 1903 building will be used by the Malta Rugby Football Union. Moreover, Pitch 1 and Pitch 3 are to be passed on to MRFU through a management agreement similar to other agreements in place with other associations in several locations. The investment amounts to over a million euro. SportMalta is in close contact with MRFU and is investing over €350,000 for the National Teams to prepare for Games of the Small States of Europe 2023 and other competitions.”

The 1903 building was the MRFU clubhouse and had dressing rooms, but is currently being restored.

One question not answered by the Ministry for sports was why the government has been dragging its feet on the Marsa negotiations, given that Kevin Buttigieg had said as much to TVM in January.