Malta men's national football team

The Malta men's national football team represents Malta in 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. Since becoming a UEFA member in 1960 and a FIFA member in 1959, Malta have competed in every qualifier for the European Championship and World Cup, but have never made it to the finals of any major international competition. History Malta played its first international game on 24 February 1957 at the Empire Stadium, losing 2–3 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. However, 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 maintained the status as one of Europe's weakest teams, though its fortunes have increased since late 2010s.