Floriana's UEFA licence was deemed to be valid after a unanimous UEFA Licensing board vote. This was announced during a MFA Council meeting on Tuesday.
The vote which confirmed this, during which a report produced by the board chairperson was consulted, also confirmed that UEFA was informed of all the process extensively before the vote was taken.
Rivals Valletta FC had asked the Malta Football association to investigate what they described as serious claims over the awarding of the UEFA Licence of newly-crowned champions Floriana.
Last May, the Malta FA announced that Floriana, along with Valletta, Hibernians and Sirens had successfully applied for the UEFA licence that makes them eligible to represent Malta in the European club competitions this summer.
Floriana were top of the Premier League when the 2019-20 season was halted due to the Covid-19 pandemic and were declared Malta champions following a controversial decision taken by the MFA Council.
However, in a statement Valletta are alleging that Floriana’s application included some irregularities but refused to divulge any details for the time being. The Citizens said that they expect the Malta FA to investigate.
“Valletta Football Club is communicating that it has submitted a formal request to the Malta Football Association to investigate a number of serious claims that have been brought to its attention with regards to the awarding of the UEFA licence to Floriana Football Club,” the club said in a statement.
“In full respect to the due process that we expect to take place in the coming hours, we will not be commenting further in public about the matter.
“Valletta Football Club is demanding nothing but fairness and equal treatment. Moreover, the club expects that should the claims being put forward result to be truthful, the applicable sanctions are applied in full respect to MFA and UEFA licensing regulations.
“Should this fail to happen, the club will consider all its options together with its local and international legal advisors for a remedy to its satisfaction.”
In a reaction, Floriana FC hit back at Valletta’s claims and accused their neighbouring rivals of issuing a statement full of “baseless, misleading, unfounded, incorrect and defamatory claims”.
“Floriana FC refers to the statement issued today by Valletta FC wherein they stated that they have written to the MFA, a letter which contains allegations which are baseless, misleading, unfounded, incorrect and defamatory, aimed at the process with which Floriana FC acquired the UEFA license as Champions of the Maltese Premier League 2019/20, as well as the club itself,” the Premier League champions said in a statement signed by club secretary Dione Borg.
“The fact remains that Floriana FC have furnished all documents request according to the rigorous process of the licensing board; a UEFA board. The process in question was scrutinised, analyzed and confirmed by the same, which issues the UEFA License to Floriana FC on its on merits.”
Floriana added that Valletta FC were going against the Malta FA statute and reserve the right of sueing them for damages the Greens might concur following their rivals’ actions.
“By means of these allegations Valletta FC are going against the statute of the same MFA and for this reason, as has been previously stated, Floriana FC are holding Valletta FC responsible for the damages which may be incurred as a result of these actions, the antithesis of the spirit and/or rivalry in sports,” the statement said.
“These actions by Valletta FC are merely part of a series of unjust and baseless attempts which have been made in an attempt to prohibit Floriana FC from, rightfully, compete in the Champions League, as champions of Maltese football.”
Meanwhile Gżira United have also issued a statement where they announced that they have also wrote to the MFA to investigate Floriana's UEFA's application.
"Gżira United have written to the Malta Football Association president and secretary general requesting an investigationa about the information received by the club in relation to possible irregularities in the submission for UEFA Licence by Floriana FC," the Maroons said in a statement.
"The club awaits the decision by the MFA Bureau once the matter was not discussed during the MFA EXCO meeting held today."