Malta U21

The National Stadium sits on the site in the Attard area. The under-21 side, known like the senior team as the Knights of St John, plays its home fixtures there in red shirts, white shorts and red socks.

The first international was played on 22 September 1977 and ended in a 1–0 defeat to Libya. Qualification for the UEFA European Under-21 Championship began in 1992, and the numbers since then are lopsided: 124 qualifying matches, 9 wins, 14 draws and 101 defeats. Malta has never reached the final tournament, and the group tables have almost always ended with the team at the bottom.

What the side is remembered for beyond results is the 2016 match-fixing case. Two qualifiers that March were investigated, the away match against Montenegro on 23 March and the home match against the Czech Republic on 29 March. In January 2018 UEFA banned six players. Emanuel Briffa and Kyle Cesare received lifetime bans, and Samir Arab was banned for two years. Ryan Camenzuli, Llywelyn Cremona and Luke Montebello received shorter bans of 18, 12 and 12 months, with community service attached.

The fixtures the team looks forward to are the friendlies against San Marino, often played as a pair. Both sides are small by European standards, and these matches are the nearest thing Malta has to a regular rival at this level.