Why Malta Said ‘No Thanks’ to a Gulf Football Payday: One Game Outside Europe Is One Too Many
“One game outside Europe is one too many” – the phrase ricocheted around the MFA offices in Ta’ Qali last week when news broke that Malta’s senior national squad could be invited to a lucrative mini-tournament in Riyadh next winter. On paper, a Gulf stop-over sounds harmless: a fat appearance fee, winter sun, maybe a…