Manchester United women's team to return to Malta in January

The Manchester United women’s football team is set to return to Malta in January for a training camp.

During the visit, the team will also play a friendly match against PSV Eindhoven at the Tony Bezzina Stadium in Paola.

The United team will be in Malta from January 3 to 8, with the game taking place on the 5th.

This visit is part of a sponsorship agreement that the football club has with Visit Malta.

Tourism Minister Clayton Bartolo announced this on Thursday and also mentioned that Malta will host other football clubs for both training and tournaments during the first quarter of 2024. The clubs are from Germany, Austria, Slovakia, Holland, and Czechia.

Aside from exposure, these visits are expected to generate around 12,500 bed nights, a significant contribution to sports tourism within the country, according to Bartolo.

“The trend of attracting such activities to our country is to allow for greater expenditure in the country compared to other areas in the tourist product. Our goal is to continue diversifying the tourist product by attracting higher-quality tourists,” said Bartolo.

Accompanying Bartolo were Malta Tourism Authority CEO Carlo Micallef and Qmedia manager Helmut Amhof.

Micallef mentioned that ongoing efforts are being made to give the country visibility on an international scale. He noted that the agreement between the brand VisitMalta and Manchester United forms a certain reputation for Malta, especially in the field of sports tourism. This helps increase enthusiasm and awareness of the beauty of the Maltese tourist product among the millions of Manchester United fans.

Amhof added that Malta is focusing on sports tourism during the winter months, with the Maltese Tourism Authority supporting preparations for more international football events.

"Manchester United Women will organize their second training camp in Malta within 12 months, highlighting the country's reputation as a major sporting destination. The women's team of PSV Eindhoven will also organize a training camp in Malta and play against the women's team of Manchester United in a friendly game during the first week of January,” Amhof added.