MFA, MFRA sign two-year kit sponsorship deal with FXDD

Maltese referees have received a belated but lucrative Christmas present after FXDD Malta Limited (www.fxdd.com.mt), an online-based investment service company, signed an agreement with the Malta FA and the Malta Football Referees Association (MFRA) to sponsor the match and training kits of local officials.

Norman Darmanin Demajo, the president of the Malta FA, Lorry Sammut, the head of the MFRA, and Fiona Soler, finance manager of FXDD Malta Limited, put pen to paper on a two-year contract yesterday at the end of a news conference announcing the sponsorship deal, held at Le Meridien St Julian’s.

“This is a unique occasion,” an upbeat Darmanin Demajo told reporters. “Thanks to the efforts of the people at the MFRA and MFA, we have reached agreement with FXDD Malta Limited for the sponsorship of the full kits of the Maltese referees.

“This is a very positive thing for Maltese football, one that fits into our vision to boost the local game. Refereeing is an important aspect in our plans to strengthen the technical centre as well as the proposed changes to the format of the local leagues currently under discussion.”

As in every country, local match officials receive their fair share of criticism from the fans and the media but Darmanin Demajo declared himself satisfied with the level of refereeing in Malta.

“I’m happy with the level of refereeing in Malta,” Darmanin Demajo said. “Referees are subject to criticism but thousands of games are ably controlled by our match officials every season.

“This is not a boastful comment on my part, after all I’ve only been in this position for four months. Controversial decisions are normal in football but I honestly believe that the standard of local refereeing is good and we’re working to improve it.

“The Malta FA treats the refereeing sector very seriously. We’re delighted to have linked up with FXDD who are willing to support Maltese referees.”

Darmanin Demajo stressed the importance of referee recruitment.

“We’re looking at how the recruitment of referees is being done,” the Malta FA president said.

“We want to encourage more people to take up refereeing. It’s a challenging career but equally rewarding. Our aim is to expand the pool of local referees. We want to provide extra motivation for referees as part of our commitment to raise the quantity and quality of our officials.”

The positive comments about the performance of the Maltese officials who took charge of one match during the recent strike by Scottish referees is testament to the high standards of local referees, Darmanin Demajo said.

The Malta FA president announced that Marco Borg, Chris Lautier, Alan Mario Sant and Clayton Pisani have been confirmed as FIFA referees, Franco Cachia has earned international recognition as a futsal referee and Esther Azzopardi has been promoted to first-class referee.

Darmanin Demajo is also putting greater emphasis on mental preparation and sports psychology for referees as he is a firm believer in ‘continued professional education’.

“Between March 6 and 8, Professor Ian Maynard, a leading sports psychologist, will be in Malta to introduce the concept of mental preparation for referees,” Darmanin Demajo said.

Sammut, the MFRA president, expressed his delight at the signing of the two-year kit sponsorship deal.

“In the history of local refereeing, we’ve not always had uniformity in our kits,” Sammut said.

“This is the first time that our referees will get their match and training kits for free. I would like to thank FXDD for their backing, the MFA, TeamSport, the technical suppliers of the MFRA, and Andre Arciola who worked really hard on this sponsorship.”

The referees and assistant referees will don adidas kits for matches and macron outfits during training.

For her part, Soler said FXDD Malta Limited’s appreciation of the importance of sport in our society was behind their decision to sponsor the kits of local referees.

“When the MFRA approached us, we saw the benefits of starting a relationship between the two parties,” Soler said. “We want to help to promote local referees.”

The willingness of a young company like FXDD to align itself with Maltese football bodes well for the efforts of the new Malta FA administration to retain their present sponsors and lure new ones to their fold.

“I’m satisfied with the response of the business community since my election as president of the Malta FA,” Darmanin Demajo said.

“There seems to be a new attitude towards the MFA. I’ve had encouraging conversations with existing and potential sponsors but I hope to translate these words into reality. We have many initiatives in the pipeline, including the idea to spread our matches across more stadia.

“We’ve been striving to make the MFA more open and accessible. I hope our efforts will lead to more sponsorship deals.”