| Season | 2017–18 |
|---|---|
| Dates | 18 August 2017 – 22 April 2018 |
| Champions | Valletta (24th title) |
| Relegated | Naxxar Lions Lija Athletic |
| Champions League | Valletta |
| Europa League | Balzan Gżira United Birkirkara |
| Matches | 182 |
| Goals | 505 (2.77 per match) |
| Top goalscorer | Amadou Samb (21 goals) |
2018–19 → All statistics correct as of 21 April 2018. | |
The2017–18 Maltese Premier League (known as theBOV Premier League for sponsorship reasons) was the 103rd season of top-flight league football in Malta. The season began on 18 August 2017 and ended on 22 April 2018.Hibernians were the defending champions, having won their 12th title theprevious season.
Balzan andValletta contended the league title for the whole season and were head-to-head in the final phases.[1] On the last day of the season, on 21 April 2018, Valletta defeatedGżira United 2–1, while Balzan slipped in a 0–1 defeat against Hibernians, and as a result Valletta were crowned champions for the 24th time in their history.[2]
Pembroke Athleta are relegated after they finished twelfth the previous season. They are replaced byLija Athletic the 2016–17Maltese First Division champions,Senglea Athletic the 2016–17Maltese First Division runners-up, andNaxxar Lions the 2016–17Maltese First Division Third Place.
| Team | In league since | City | Training Stadium | Capacity |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Balzan | 2011 | Balzan | Victor Tedesco Stadium | 6,000 |
| Birkirkara | 1990 | Birkirkara | Ta' Qali National Stadium | 17,797 |
| Floriana | 1986 | Floriana | Independence Arena | 3,000 |
| Gżira United | 2016 | Gżira | Ta' Qali National Stadium | 17,797 |
| Ħamrun Spartans | 2016 | Ħamrun | Victor Tedesco Stadium | 6,000 |
| Hibernians | 1945 | Paola | Hibernians Ground | 2,968 |
| Lija Athletic | 2017 | Lija | Lija Stadium | 500 |
| Mosta | 2011 | Mosta | Charles Abela Memorial Stadium | 600 |
| Naxxar | 2017 | Naxxar | Centenary Stadium | 2,000 |
| Senglea Athletic | 2017 | Senglea | Ta' Qali National Stadium | 17,000 |
| Sliema Wanderers | 1984 | Sliema | Tigne Sports Complex | 1,000 |
| Saint Andrews | 2015 | St. Andrew's | Luxol Stadium | 800 |
| Tarxien Rainbows | 2008 | Tarxien | Tony Cassar Sports Ground | 1,000 |
| Valletta | 1944 | Valletta | Centenary Stadium | 2,000 |
| Team | Kit manufacturer | Shirt sponsor |
|---|---|---|
| Balzan | Joma | Investors Mutual Limited |
| Birkirkara | Adidas | McDonald's |
| Floriana | Joma | Scotts Supermarket |
| Gżira United | Joma | Tipbet |
| Ħamrun Spartans | Sportika SA | Talocan |
| Hibernians | Joma | Bezzina |
| Lija Athletic | Adidas | The Falzon Group Of Companies |
| Mosta | Macron | Computer Domain |
| Naxxar | Macron | VINC |
| Senglea Athletic | Acerbis | |
| Sliema Wanderers | Adidas | DIZZ |
| Saint Andrews | Macron | Tipico |
| Tarxien Rainbows | Erreà | Cassar Ship Repairs |
| Valletta | Joma | Iniala |
| Ta' Qali | Ta' Qali | Paola | Hamrun | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ta' Qali National Stadium | Centenary Stadium | Tony Bezzina Stadium | Victor Tedesco Stadium | |
| Capacity:16,997 | Capacity:3,000 | Capacity:2,968 | Capacity:1,962 | |
| Team | Outgoing manager | Manner of departure | Date of vacancy | Position in table | Replaced by | Date of appointment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Balzan | Mutual consent | 5 May 2017[3] | Pre-season | 24 May 2017[4] | ||
| Valletta | Resigned | 30 May 2017[5] | 18 June 2017[6] | |||
| Birkirkara | End of contract | 1 June 2017[7] | 1 June 2017[7] | |||
| Sacked | 1 September 2017[8] | 11th | 1 September 2017[8] | |||
| St. Andrews | Resigned | 7 September 2017[9] | 9th | 12 September 2017 | ||
| Naxxar | 13th | 8 September 2017[10] | ||||
| Valletta | Mutual consent | 20 December 2017 | 3rd | 20 December 2017[11] | ||
| Hibernians | Resigned | 5 March 2018[12] | 6th | 6 March 2018[13] |
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Valletta(C) | 26 | 17 | 7 | 2 | 40 | 11 | +29 | 58 | Qualification for theChampions League first qualifying round |
| 2 | Balzan | 26 | 16 | 7 | 3 | 42 | 19 | +23 | 55 | Qualification for theEuropa League first qualifying round |
| 3 | Gżira United | 26 | 15 | 6 | 5 | 52 | 33 | +19 | 51 | Qualification for theEuropa League preliminary round |
| 4 | Birkirkara | 26 | 15 | 2 | 9 | 44 | 28 | +16 | 47 | |
| 5 | Hibernians | 26 | 13 | 7 | 6 | 43 | 16 | +27 | 46 | |
| 6 | Floriana | 26 | 12 | 10 | 4 | 48 | 18 | +30 | 46 | |
| 7 | Sliema Wanderers | 26 | 11 | 7 | 8 | 35 | 26 | +9 | 40 | |
| 8 | Hamrun Spartans | 26 | 10 | 5 | 11 | 39 | 33 | +6 | 35 | |
| 9 | Senglea Athletic | 26 | 7 | 5 | 14 | 29 | 47 | −18 | 26 | |
| 10 | Mosta | 26 | 7 | 5 | 14 | 28 | 52 | −24 | 26 | |
| 11 | St. Andrews | 26 | 6 | 6 | 14 | 21 | 41 | −20 | 24 | |
| 12 | Tarxien Rainbows(O) | 26 | 6 | 5 | 15 | 34 | 56 | −22 | 23 | Qualification for the Relegation Play-Offs |
| 13 | Naxxar Lions(R) | 26 | 5 | 7 | 14 | 27 | 41 | −14 | 22 | Relegation to the2018–19 Maltese First Division |
| 14 | Lija Athletic(R) | 26 | 1 | 3 | 22 | 23 | 84 | −61 | 6 |
Each team plays every other team in the league home-and-away for a total of 26 matches played each.
| Home \ Away | BAL | BIR | FLO | GŻI | HAM | HIB | LIJ | MOS | NAX | SEN | SLI | STA | TAR | VAL |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Balzan | — | 2–1 | 1–1 | 0–0 | 2–0 | 1–0 | 4–3 | 2–0 | 2–0 | 2–1 | 0–0 | 3–1 | 1–0 | 2–1 |
| Birkirkara | 1–3 | — | 1–1 | 4–0 | 4–2 | 1–3 | 2–1 | 2–0 | 3–2 | 5–0 | 2–1 | 2–0 | 3–1 | 0–3 |
| Floriana | 1–1 | 0–2 | — | 1–1 | 1–0 | 0–1 | 6–0 | 5–0 | 2–0 | 3–0 | 1–0 | 4–0 | 5–0 | 1–1 |
| Gżira United | 1–2 | 2–0 | 0–0 | — | 4–0 | 3–2 | 3–2 | 2–2 | 3–1 | 4–1 | 2–1 | 1–1 | 3–1 | 2–1 |
| Ħamrun Spartans | 0–0 | 0–1 | 0–1 | 1–2 | — | 0–1 | 1–1 | 5–2 | 2–0 | 3–0 | 2–3 | 1–1 | 2–1 | 0–0 |
| Hibernians | 1–0 | 1–0 | 1–1 | 2–0 | 0–0 | — | 7–0 | 3–0 | 1–1 | 5–1 | 0–1 | 4–0 | 2–2 | 0–0 |
| Lija Athletic | 0–3 | 0–2 | 2–6 | 0–4 | 1–5 | 0–3 | — | 1–5 | 0–4 | 2–3 | 0–2 | 1–2 | 0–4 | 1–3 |
| Mosta | 0–5 | 0–3 | 2–2 | 3–5 | 0–2 | 0–0 | 3–1 | — | 0–2 | 2–1 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 3–1 | 0–1 |
| Naxxar Lions | 0–0 | 0–2 | 1–2 | 0–2 | 1–4 | 0–0 | 1–1 | 2–0 | — | 3–0 | 1–5 | 3–1 | 1–2 | 0–1 |
| Senglea Athletic | 0–1 | 1–0 | 0–0 | 1–1 | 1–3 | 0–1 | 2–0 | 5–2 | 2–1 | — | 3–0 | 2–1 | 2–2 | 0–1 |
| Sliema Wanderers | 1–2 | 3–0 | 2–2 | 2–1 | 1–0 | 1–0 | 2–0 | 0–1 | 1–1 | 2–2 | — | 1–0 | 1–1 | 0–1 |
| St. Andrews | 3–2 | 1–0 | 1–0 | 2–3 | 1–2 | 2–1 | 1–1 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 1–0 | 0–2 | — | 2–3 | 0–1 |
| Tarxien Rainbows | 3–1 | 1–3 | 0–2 | 1–2 | 1–4 | 0–3 | 2–3 | 0–1 | 5–2 | 1–1 | 2–1 | 0–0 | — | 0–2 |
| Valletta | 0–0 | 0–0 | 1–0 | 2–1 | 3–0 | 2–1 | 4–2 | 1–0 | 0–0 | 1–0 | 1–1 | 3–0 | 6–0 | — |
A play-off match took place between the twelfth-placed team from the Premier League,Tarxien Rainbows, and the third-placed team from theFirst Division,Zejtun Corinthians, for a place in the2018–19 Maltese Premier League.
| 27 April 2018 | Tarxien Rainbows (1) | 1–0 | Zejtun Corinthians (2) | Paola |
| 19:00CEST | J. Brincat | Stadium:Hibernians Stadium Referee: Stefan Pace |
| Rank | Player | Club | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Gżira United | 21 | |
| 2 | Floriana | 17 | |
| 3 | Balzan | 14 | |
| 4 | Birkirkara | 11 | |
| Lija Athletic | |||
| Hibernians | |||
| 7 | Hibernians | 10 | |
| Gżira United | |||
| Tarxien Rainbows | |||
| Tarxien Rainbows |
| Month | Player of the Month | |
|---|---|---|
| Player | Club | |
| August[16] | Valletta | |
| September[17] | Gżira United | |
| October[18] | Balzan | |
| November[19] | Balzan | |
| December[20] | Floriana | |
| January[21] | St. Andrews | |
| February[22] | Hibernians | |
| March[23] | Valletta | |
| April[24] | St. Andrews | |
| # | Football club | Average attendance |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Valletta FC | 2,166 |
| 2 | Gżira United | 1,421 |
| 3 | Ħamrun Spartans | 1,325 |
| 4 | Balzan FC | 976 |
| 5 | Hibernians FC | 945 |
| 6 | Floriana FC | 892 |
| 7 | Sliema Wanderers | 732 |
| 8 | Birkirkara FC | 674 |
| 9 | Senglea Athletic | 493 |
| 10 | Mosta FC | 481 |
| 11 | St. Andrews FC | 402 |
| 12 | Tarxien Rainbows | 389 |
| 13 | Naxxar Lions | 268 |
| 14 | Lija Athletic | 230 |