España Malta

Four days before the game, the Netherlands defeated Malta 5–0 and finished their qualification schedule with 13 points and a goal difference of +16. The aggregate score between Spain and the Netherlands was 2–2 so, under tournament tie-break rules, if Spain won their final qualifier and thus also finished on 13 points, the goal difference would decide which team qualified.

With a goal difference of +5, Spain would need to defeat Malta by a margin of at least 11 goals to qualify. The team had only managed to score 12 goals in their previous seven matches, and before the game the Maltese goalkeeper, John Bonello, said: "Spain couldn't even score 11 goals against a team of children."

After 17 December, and before Spain's match against Malta, the group 7 table stood as follows:

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts

1 Netherlands 8 6 1 1 22 6 +16 13

2 Spain 7 5 1 1 12 7 +5 11

3 Republic of Ireland 8 4 1 3 20 10 +10 9

4 Iceland 8 1 1 6 3 13 −10 3

5 Malta 7 1 0 6 4 25 −21 2

Red = unable to qualify.

Match[edit]

Spain's only chance of qualifying for Euro 1984 was to defeat Malta by 11 or more goals.

When half-time came and the scoreline was 3–1 to Spain, few expected them to score enough goals to qualify. However, Juan Antonio Señor, who had missed a penalty kick awarded to Spain in the second minute of the first half, scored Spain's 12th and last goal in the 84th minute; Rafael Gordillo scored a 13th in the final minutes of the game but it was disallowed by the referee. That did not matter, however, as the Spaniards won by the 11-goal margin required for them to beat the Netherlands to qualification.[1]

21 December 1983

20:15 CET

Spain 12–1 Malta

Santillana Goal 15', 26', 29', 75'

Rincón Goal 47', 57', 64', 78'

Maceda Goal 62', 63'

Sarabia Goal 80'

Señor Goal 84' Report Degiorgio Goal 24'

Benito Villamarín, Seville

Attendance: 18,871

Referee: Erkan Göksel (Turkey)

Spain

Malta

GK 1 Francisco Buyo

DF 5 Andoni Goikoetxea

DF 3 José Antonio Camacho

DF 4 Antonio Maceda Booked

DF 2 Juan Antonio Señor

MF 8 Víctor Muñoz

MF 6 Rafael Gordillo Booked

MF 10 Manuel Sarabia

FW 7 Francisco José Carrasco

FW 9 Santillana

FW 11 Hipólito Rincón Substituted off 87'

Substitutions:

FW 16 Marcos Alonso Substituted in 87'

Manager:

Spain Miguel Muñoz

GK 1 John Bonello Booked

DF 3 Alex Azzopardi

DF 2 Emanuel Farrugia

DF 5 John Holland

DF 6 Norman Buttigieg

DF 10 Emanuel Fabri Booked

MF 11 Michael Degiorgio Yellow cardYellow cardRed card, 76'

MF 9 Ernest Spiteri Gonzi

MF 8 Ray Farrugia Substituted off 72'

FW 4 Simon Tortell Booked

FW 7 Silvio Demanuele

Substitutions:

DF 14 Mario Farrugia Substituted in 72'

Manager:

Malta Victor Scerri

This article contains weasel words: vague phrasing that often accompanies biased or unverifiable information. Such statements should be clarified or removed. (June 2014)

The match was broadcast by RTVE in Spain. Afterwards, many claimed[citation needed] that the Maltese were paid to not play their best and to let Spain win by a large margin, and it was rumoured that words had been exchanged between Maltese and Spanish officials and players at half-time. No wrongdoing was ever proved.

The Malta Football Association launched an inquiry into the result, and its chairman George Abela (later

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