by Maltese public will not be able to watch Malta’s final group stage match against Portugal as it will not be broadcast in Malta unless agreement is reached in under twenty-four hours. Portugal’s Francisco Neto and Malta’s Manuela Tesse were united in voicing the disappointment of such situations which hinder the growth of the women’s game.
UPDATE ON BROADCAST 14:45 CET (16.07.2024): The two parties have reached an agreement and the match will be televised in Malta on TVM News+.
Coaches Underline Importance of Promotion
As things stand, the Maltese public will not be able to watch the Malta Women’s National Team’s final bow in the UEFA Women’s European Qualification group stage match against leaders Portugal tomorrow. This is understood to be the result of disagreement on securing the broadcasting rights.
Malta’s Manuela Tesse was questioned on her thoughts of this decision when considering the amount of work that she, her staff and the players have put in throughout these months and the fact that the Maltese public will not be able to watch the match.
She pondered, “The difference in culture of how Portugal and Malta look at women’s football is very high. Maybe it is because we are relegated and who is making these decisions is only looking at the results, I do not know. Of course I am disappointed.”
Portugal’s coach, Francisco Neto, echoed the sentiment of Manuela Tesse, “I’m sad that the game will not be shown in Malta.” He continued, “That question should be directed to the Malta federation (Malta Football Association – MFA). We all are in a growing procedure of women’s football, it’s common ground for every country to push the game forward. Promotion is very important for that kind of growth.”
Noting the ridiculous nature of the situation, considering the consolidated efforts that those truly invested in growing women’s football are putting in, Neto quipped to the organised media that perhaps the Portuguese’s federation’s channel 11 could share a link on Youtube. However, he quickly reverted to a serious tone, “Maltese people deserve to see their national team.”
He continued, “It’s important that the players, who are in the centre of all this, have the promotion so that everyone can see what they can do in football. If there’s more people watching women’s football, then of course it will grow. What they do on the pitch is their art.”
As a coach, Francisco Neto took over Portugal’s Women’s National Team in 2014, led them to their first EURO qualification in 2017 and since the team has continued rising among the best in female football.
Speaking from the experience of having faced the challenges in the long term process along the way to achieve this success, Neto had a positive outlook on the future of Malta’s Women’s National Team, despite the relegation.
He said, “Those who have seen Malta go from League C to League B can see that the team is very competitive, with some good results. People who watched the games will have seen a good organisational level. Coach Manuela (Tesse) has been spectacular. I have no doubt that in four to five years Malta will have consolidated their position in League B and after that, we see what happens. Malta has quality, passion and character.”
The television rights for such competitions in the women’s game are not yet centrally organised by UEFA, but it gives the reigns to the football associations to come to an agreement between them on a match by match basis. This is in contrast to the organisation of men’s competitions.
The Sporting Fan understands that the Malta Football Association has been in contact to get the match broadcasted on Malta’s national broadcasting channel, TVM. However, disagreements persist in the terms with the Portuguese Federation on the broadcasting rights. The result of this disagreement is that the Maltese public will not be able to watch the match live on national television.
The match will be played in the Municipal Stadium of Leiria, tomorrow 16th July at 19:00 CET.
Lead Image: Brandon Bonett
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[…] has surfaced on whether the disagreements on the terms of broadcasting have been resolved, since yesterday’s report. At the time of writing, The Sporting Fan understands that the match will not be televised in […]