| Season | 2011–12 |
|---|---|
| Champions | Valletta (21st title) |
| Relegated | Marsaxlokk Mqabba |
| Champions League | Valletta |
| Europa League | Hibernians Birkirkara Floriana |
| Matches | 126 |
| Goals | 384 (3.05 per match) |
| Top goalscorer | Obinna Obiefule (34 goals) |
| Biggest home win | Hibernians 5–0Birkirkara |
| Biggest away win | Hamrun Spartans 0–4Birkirkara |
| Highest scoring | Marsaxlokk 5–3Hamrun Spartans |
2012–13 → | |
The2011–12 Maltese Premier League was the 97th season of theMaltese Premier League, the top-tierfootball league inMalta. It began on 19 August 2011 and it ended in May 2012.Valletta were the defending champions, having won their 20th titlelast season.
The Premier League consists of two rounds. In the First Round, every team plays each opponent twice, once "home" and once "away" (in actuality, the designation of home and away is purely arbitrary as most of the clubs do not have their own grounds), for a total of 22 games. The league then splits into two pools. Earned points are subsequently halved. Teams that finish in positions 1–6 compete in the "Top Six" and teams that finish in positions 7–12 play in the "Play-Out".
On 13 January 2011, theMalta Football Association decided to expand the league to 12 teams starting with this season.[1]
Vittoriosa Stars were relegated to theFirst Division after finishing in last place of thePlay-Out last season. This ended a one-year stay in the Premier League for them. Taking their place in the competition areBalzan, the champions of the Maltese First Division. Balzan are playing in the Premier League after a seven season absence.
Because of the league's expansion for this season, the second- and third-place finishers of the First Division,Mqabba andMosta respectively, were also promoted to the Premier League for this season. Mqabba return to the top league after a three year absence while Mosta return after five years away.
| 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 | |
Only a few stadia have the infrastructure needed to host Premier League matches. These areTa' Qali National Stadium andCentenary Stadium atTa' Qali,Attard,Victor Tedesco Stadium atĦamrun andHibernians Ground atPaola. Additional to that, each team has been assigned to a dedicated training ground. On a few occasions, Hibernians and Hamrun Spartans play at their home ground, but otherwise all games are played on neutral ground, rendering "home" and "away" games purely symbolic.
| Team | Location of origin | Ground | Location of ground |
|---|---|---|---|
| Balzan | Balzan | ||
| Birkirkara | Birkirkara | Infetti Ground | Birkirkara |
| Floriana | Floriana | Victor Tedesco Stadium | Ħamrun |
| Hibernians | Paola | Hibernians Ground | Paola |
| Hamrun Spartans | Ħamrun | Victor Tedesco Stadium | Ħamrun |
| Marsaxlokk | Marsaxlokk | Marsaxlokk Ground | Marsaxlokk |
| Mosta | Mosta | Mosta Ground | Mosta |
| Mqabba | Mqabba | ||
| Qormi | Qormi | Thomaso Grounds | Qormi |
| Sliema Wanderers | Sliema | Tigné Point | Sliema |
| Tarxien Rainbows | Tarxien | Tarxien Ground | Tarxien |
| Valletta | Valletta | Salinos Ground | Valletta |
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Valletta | 22 | 17 | 4 | 1 | 52 | 17 | +35 | 55 | Qualification for theTop Six |
| 2 | Hibernians | 22 | 15 | 6 | 1 | 55 | 16 | +39 | 51 | |
| 3 | Floriana | 22 | 12 | 6 | 4 | 34 | 19 | +15 | 42 | |
| 4 | Sliema Wanderers | 22 | 8 | 11 | 3 | 34 | 24 | +10 | 35 | |
| 5 | Birkirkara | 22 | 11 | 2 | 9 | 34 | 29 | +5 | 35 | |
| 6 | Balzan | 22 | 9 | 4 | 9 | 28 | 34 | −6 | 31 | |
| 7 | Qormi | 22 | 9 | 2 | 11 | 36 | 37 | −1 | 29 | Qualification for thePlay-Out |
| 8 | Mosta | 22 | 6 | 5 | 11 | 23 | 35 | −12 | 23 | |
| 9 | Mqabba | 22 | 5 | 5 | 12 | 25 | 43 | −18 | 20 | |
| 10 | Hamrun Spartans | 22 | 5 | 4 | 13 | 31 | 52 | −21 | 19 | |
| 11 | Tarxien Rainbows | 22 | 5 | 3 | 14 | 26 | 44 | −18 | 18 | |
| 12 | Marsaxlokk | 22 | 3 | 2 | 17 | 25 | 53 | −28 | 11 |
| Home \ Away | BAL | BIR | FLO | HIB | HAM | MRS | MOS | MQA | QOR | SLI | TAR | VAL |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Balzan | — | 0–4 | 2–2 | 3–2 | 2–0[a] | 3–1 | 1–1 | 1–2 | 2–0 | 2–1 | 1–0 | 0–2 |
| Birkirkara | 2–1 | — | 0–1 | 0–3 | 3–1 | 1–0 | 0–0 | 1–0 | 2–0 | 0–1 | 2–3 | 1–4 |
| Floriana | 3–1 | 0–3 | — | 0–0 | 4–2 | 4–0 | 1–2 | 2–0 | 2–1 | 0–1 | 1–0 | 0–1 |
| Hibernians | 3–1 | 5–0 | 1–1 | — | 5–0 | 2–1 | 2–1 | 4–1 | 4–0 | 1–1 | 2–0 | 1–1 |
| Hamrun Spartans | 1–2 | 0–4 | 0–1 | 1–1 | — | 6–2 | 2–2 | 0–2 | 2–3 | 4–2 | 3–1 | 0–2 |
| Marsaxlokk | 0–1 | 1–2 | 0–4 | 0–2 | 5–3 | — | 5–2 | 0–2 | 1–2 | 0–2 | 2–2 | 0–2 |
| Mosta | 1–0 | 1–3 | 2–3 | 0–2 | 0–1 | 0–0 | — | 3–0 | 1–0 | 3–2 | 2–1 | 0–3 |
| Mqabba | 2–2 | 2–2 | 0–1 | 1–6 | 2–3 | 1–0 | 1–1 | — | 1–4 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 2–4 |
| Qormi | 3–0 | 2–0 | 1–1 | 0–2 | 3–0 | 3–1 | 4–1 | 0–1 | — | 1–3 | 4–1 | 1–4 |
| Sliema Wanderers | 1–1 | 1–0 | 0–0 | 3–3 | 1–1 | 2–2 | 2–0 | 1–1 | 3–3 | — | 3–0 | 0–0 |
| Tarxien Rainbows | 1–2 | 1–3 | 1–2 | 1–2 | 1–1 | 2–4 | 1–0 | 3–2 | 2–0 | 1–1 | — | 1–4 |
| Valletta | 2–0 | 2–1 | 1–1 | 0–2 | 4–0 | 5–2 | 1–0 | 2–1 | 3–1 | 1–1 | 4–2 | — |
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification | VAL | HIB | BIR | FLO | SLI | BAL | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Valletta(C) | 32 | 25 | 5 | 2 | 75 | 24 | +51 | 54 | Qualification for the2012–13 UEFA Champions League | — | 1–2 | 1–1 | 2–0 | 3–0 | 1–0 | |
| 2 | Hibernians | 32 | 22 | 6 | 4 | 74 | 26 | +48 | 46 | Qualification for the2012–13 UEFA Europa League[a] | 2–3 | — | 0–1 | 1–0 | 2–1 | 3–0 | |
| 3 | Birkirkara | 32 | 17 | 4 | 11 | 55 | 37 | +18 | 38 | 0–2 | 2–0 | — | 3–1 | 1–1 | 3–0 | ||
| 4 | Floriana | 32 | 16 | 6 | 10 | 46 | 32 | +14 | 29 | 0–1 | 0–2 | 2–1 | — | 1–4 | 3–1 | ||
| 5 | Sliema Wanderers | 32 | 9 | 14 | 9 | 43 | 50 | −7 | 23 | 0–2 | 1–3 | 1–4 | 1–3 | — | 1–1 | ||
| 6 | Balzan | 32 | 9 | 6 | 17 | 36 | 64 | −28 | 15 | 2–7 | 1–4 | 0–5 | 0–3 | 3–3 | — |
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Relegation | QOR | MOS | TAR | HAM | MQA | MRS | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7 | Qormi | 32 | 15 | 2 | 15 | 54 | 48 | +6 | 33 | — | 1–4 | 1–0 | 6–0 | 2–1 | 5–1 | ||
| 8 | Mosta | 32 | 10 | 8 | 14 | 45 | 47 | −2 | 27 | 2–0 | — | 0–2 | 2–2 | 2–2 | 5–0 | ||
| 9 | Tarxien Rainbows | 32 | 11 | 3 | 18 | 45 | 54 | −9 | 27 | 1–2 | 2–1 | — | 1–2 | 1–0 | 2–4 | ||
| 10 | Hamrun Spartans | 32 | 9 | 7 | 16 | 47 | 71 | −24 | 25 | 1–0 | 1–1 | 0–3 | — | 0–0 | 3–1 | ||
| 11 | Mqabba(R) | 32 | 9 | 7 | 16 | 40 | 55 | −15 | 24 | Relegation to the2012–13 Maltese First Division | 0–1 | 1–0 | 0–5 | 4–1 | — | 3–0 | |
| 12 | Marsaxlokk[a](R) | 32 | 5 | 2 | 25 | 34 | 88 | −54 | 8 | 1–0 | 1–5 | 0–2 | 1–6 | 0–4 | — |
| Rank | Player | Club | Goals[3] |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Marsaxlokk /Mosta | 34 | |
| 2 | Hibernians | 21 | |
| 3 | Hibernians | 11 | |
| 4 | Birkirkara | 10 | |
| 5 | Qormi | 9 | |
| Valletta | 9 | ||
| Valletta | 9 | ||
| 8 | Sliema Wanderers | 10 | |
| Mqabba | 8 | ||
| 10 | Mqabba | 7 |