The Malta Tourism Authority has teamed up with Manchester United for a promotional campaign in France and Belgium. 

Players Edinson Cavani, Diogo Dalot, Hannibal Mejbri and Juan Mata sat down with staff from the Malta Tourism Authority in France, for a ‘This and That’ about the Maltese Islands.

The four stars were asked whether they prefer Valletta or Gozo; about their favourite outdoor activity in Malta; their favourite swimming spots and whether they are partial to some pastizzi or a typical Maltese ftira, among other questions. 

“The fact that Malta is the official destination partner of Manchester United is leading to continuous visibility and marketing coordination on an unprecedented level, not just in Europe but in other markets such as America, Asia and the Middle East. This is of sterling importance to pursue our mission in establishing the Maltese Islands as a centre of excellence for sports tourism, a niche which is expected to continue assisting in the recovery of the local tourism sector,” Tourism Minister Clayton Bartolo said.

The initiative was spearheaded by the MTA Director in France Dominic Micallef.

“Being well aware of the MTA - Manchester United partnership, I wanted to explore a new avenue of how best to promote the Maltese islands on the French market by interviewing some French-speaking players from the team," he explained.

"The four of them provided excellent testimonials for Malta. I was happy to pilot this project for MTA as I am sure that the fast question and answer 3 min video, which will be shared on our social media platforms in France and Belgium, will prove to be an ideal marketing tool to promote Malta in both territories,” Micallef said.