2022–23 Maltese FA Trophy explained

Maltese FA Trophy
Year:2022–23
Country:Malta
Dates:15 November 2022 - 30 April 2023
Defending Champions:Floriana
Winners:Birkirkara (6th title)
Matches:42
Goals:153
Scoring Leader:Pablo Vinicius De Moraes Ferreira (5 Goals)
Prev Season:2021–22
Next Season:2023–24
Updated:30 May 2023

The 2022–23 Maltese FA Trophy, officially named IZIBET FA Trophy due to sponsorship reasons, is the 85th edition of the football cup competition, the FA Trophy. The winners of the Maltese FA Trophy will earn a place in the first qualifying round of the 2023–24 UEFA Europa Conference League. The first round of games started on 15 November 2022.[1]

Floriana were the defending champions. But were eliminated in the Round of 32 by Santa Lucia.

Preliminary round

Twelve preliminary round matches played on 15–22 November 2022. The draw for the preliminary round was held on 26 October 2022.[2] [1]

Round of 32

Sixteen Matches were played on 13–15 January. The draw for the Round of 32 and Round of 16 was held on 4 January 2023. The draws were held by Malta FA Director of Football Operations Stephen Azzopardi together with former Malta national team player Michael Mifsud and Franco Degabriele Chief Commercial Officer of IZIBET.The Round of 32 featured all 14 clubs across the Premier League, who entered the competition in this round.

Round of 16

Eight Matches were played on 7, 8, and 15 February. The draw for the Round of 32 and Round of 16 was held on 4 January 2023. The draws were held by Malta FA Director of Football Operations Stephen Azzopardi together with former Malta national team player Michael Mifsud and Franco Degabriele Chief Commercial Officer of IZIBET. The round includes at least two teams from the Maltese Challenge League San Ġwann and Swieqi United, and two clubs representing from Gozo Football League are Kerċem Ajax and Qala Saints. On 8 and 9 February the Malta Football Association Postponed six matches because of bad weather in Malta, and they played on 15 February.

Quarter-finals

The matches were played on 25 and 26 February 2023. The draw for the Quarter-final was held on 17 February 2023. The draws were held by former Malta international defender Brian Said and Franco Degabriele from Izibet in the presence of Malta FA Director Football Operations Stephen Azzopardi. The round includes one team from the second tier, the lowest-ranked team remaining in the competition: San Ġwann.

Semi-finals

The matches were played on 25 and 26 April 2023. The draw for the Semi-final was held on 15 April 2023. In the Semi-finals, there are 4 clubs left. All from Maltese Premier League.

Final

The match was played on 30 April 2023.

Birkirkara reached their eleventh Maltese FA Trophy finals having won it five times. Marsaxlokk reached their second finals and never won it.This will be the first time both clubs meet each other in the final.The last time Birkirkara and Marsaxlokk met together in the FA Trophy was the 2007–08 season in the Quarter-finals when Birkirkara beat Marsaxlokk by 2–1.

Top scorers

RankPlayerClubGoals
1 Pablo Vinicius De Moraes FerreiraKercem Ajax5
2 Lydon CuschieriAttard3
Claudio Henrique Da Silva BarbosaGhajnsielem
Lucas Ribeiro De OliveiraGzira United
Elvis Mashike SukisaHamrun Spartans
Bruno Da CruzKercem Ajax
Santiago Fabian MoracciMarsaxlokk
Gustavo Dourado FerreiraNadur Youngsters
Igor NedeljkovicNadur Youngsters
Robinson Blandon RendonNaxxar Lions
David Oliveira SouzaZabbar St.Patrick

Television rights

The following matches were broadcast live on TVMSports+:

RoundTVMSports+
Round of 32Gzira United vs Sliema WanderersFloriana vs Santa Lucia
Round of 16Balzan vs BirkirkaraValletta vs Ħamrun Spartans
Quarter-finalsBirkirkara vs Ħamrun SpartansHibernians vs Marsaxlokk
Semi-finalsMarsaxlokk vs Gżira UnitedBirkirkara vs Mosta
FinalBirkirkara vs Marsaxlokk

Notes and References

  1. News: Izibet FA Trophy 2022/23 preliminary round fixtures released. Busuttil. Antoine. 2022-11-02. 2022-11-07. MaltaFootball.
  2. News: Izibet FA Trophy 2022/23 preliminary round draws. Busuttil. Antoine. 2022-10-26. 2022-11-07. MaltaFootball.