With Malta having such a pleasant climate, there are a wide variety of land and sea sport facilities to choose from. Malta’s largest sports centre (The Marsa Sports Club) is about 4 km (2.5 miles) south of Valletta and lists among its numerous features an 18-hole golf course, miniature golf, 18 tennis courts, 5 squash courts, cricket grounds and a swimming pool. Tourists can join the club on a weekly basis while they vacation in Malta. For golf, non-members are welcome and clubs can be rented at the facility.
It is a sure fact that football or soccer is the most popular sport in Malta and the oldest of all the national sports disciplines practiced and followed in on the island and thus qualifies for the title 'the national game'. Although the Malta Football Association, one of the oldest in Europe, was founded in 1900, the first league competition took place only in season 1909/10 and till now eighty-seven (87) Championship titles have been won. Subsequent years saw the inception of other competitions alongside the league competition. These included the M.F.A. Cup in season 1910-11 (6 editions held), the Cousis Shield in 1914-15 (11 editions held) and the Cassar Cup for charity purposes in season 1920-21 (41 editions held). Season 1934-35 heralded the prestigious F.A. Trophy competition which so far has produced 64 winners.
Rugby is also a sport which has become very popular on the island. There is a story to Malta Rugby prior to the founding of the Rugby Association of Malta, now known as the Malta Rugby Football Union, and the Malta Rugby Football League in 1991. The game in Malta can trace its origins to the Overseas Rugby Club that was established in the post-war years (1946). The members of Overseas consisted of British and Commonwealth expatriate servicemen and Maltese civilians and military personnel who participated in competitions against Royal Navy, Royal Air Force and Army teams visiting, or stationed in, Malta over the years. In the 1970s, two school and college sides developed at St. Edwards College and Tal-Handaq College, with even some matches played by schoolboys against the hardened veterans from the services! But the senior game was mostly played by expatriates and a few native players. When Malta pulled out of NATO and the Services left the island in 1979, the game in Malta seemed to be breathing its last were it not for a tight-knit group of die-hards who formed a social rugby club called the Phoenicians in 1983. Since then the game in Malta has gone from strength to strength.
Another popular sport on the island is cricket. There are four Cricket teams but as Malta is such a small place there is only the one ground! The Pitch is inside the Marsa Sports Club Complex and gets shared between the Main Club and the other teams in terms. Cricket has been played on the existing site for over a century. A cricket match is played every Saturday at the club, with touring sides offered both weekend and midweek matches.
Horseback riding is a well-liked activity by the locals and horse racing is Malta’s prime spectator sport, with races held every Sunday, between October and May.
Maltese lawn bowling and tenpin bowling are very popular at the local level and one can play lawn bowling in most villages. Also very common are clay pigeon/skeet shooting, with competitive/practice shootings taking place on Sunday mornings.
Of course, water sports play a big role in the activity range on the Islands and equipment is available to rent at almost every major sandy beach or beach club.
Paragliding, windsurfing, wakeboarding, water skiing and scuba diving are all enjoyed by locals and tourists. Sailing regattas are held regularly between April and November, including the Comino Regatta in June, the Malta-Syracuse race for keelboats in July and the Rimini-Malta-
Rimini Yacht race in August. The most prestigious race on the yachting calendar is definitely The Rolex Middle Sea Race and this can be considered as one of the great classic offshore races, and sits happily beside the Rolex Fastnet Race and the Rolex Sydney to Hobart. It is not for nothing that the world's fastest boats cite the Rolex Middle Sea Race as a major objective. There are good facilities for boat rentals and yacht charters exist throughout the Island.
In addition, Malta boasts a wide selection of other sporting events sponsored by national associations, including judo, basketball, cycling, table tennis, hockey, water polo, wrestling, fencing and more.
Click here to obtain more information on Marsa Sports Club
Click here to obtain more information on Malta Football
Click here to obtain more information on Golf
Click here to obtain more information on Malta Rugby
Click here to obtain more information on the Rolex Middle Sea Race
