Coaches

Season 1996-1997 - Mr. Alex Sunderland & Mr. Alfred Cardona

In season 1996-1997, the first season that saw Birkirkara seriously challenging for the main honours, Mr. Alfred Cardona was appointed the new Head Coach after Mr. Alex Sunderland parted ways with Birkirkara FC.

Birkirkara had a very positive run in the first two rounds but they failed to impress in the third round and Valletta were declared Champions. Mr. Alfred Cardona was at the helm of the team when our Club qualified for the first time ever to take part in the UEFA Cup after having ended the league in the second place.

Season 1997-1998 - Mr. Robert Gatt & Mr. Alfred Cardona

After his long spell with the Malta FA, Mr. Robert Gatt was appointed coach of Birkirkara in season 1997-98 where he worked in tandem with Mr. Alfred Cardona.

Under Gatt and Cardona, Birkirkara came within a whisker of winning what would have been their first league championship but they lost 2-1 to Valletta in the famous title showdown of May 1998 that drew a sell-out crowd to the National Stadium. Mr. Robert Gatt only lasted one season as Birkirkara's coach.

Season 1998-1999 - Mr. Vlado Pejovic

In the 1998-1999 season Birkirkara made some technical team changes as Mr. Vlado Pejovic was appointed new Head Coach.

Under his guidance Birkirkara won their first silverware ever as 'The Stripes' opened the season on a very high note when they clinched the Lowenbrau Cup and then the Super 5 Cup. One may have thought that this was the season for Birkirkara but the disappointment in the Premier League and Trophy campaign resumed as they once again ended up in the second position of the league, and they were beaten 2-1 by Valletta FC in the Trophy final.

Season 1999-2000 - Mr. Atnas Marinov

In the 1999-2000 season, Birkirkara appointed Mr. Atanas Marinov as Head Coach.

'The Stripes' finally clinched their first league title which was followed by unique kind of celebrations that Malta had never witnessed before. In a very disappointing and unexpected ending of this memorable season Birkirkara were defeated by Sliema Wanderers 4-1 in the FA Trophy final and then 3-0 in the Super Cup.

Season 2000-2001 - Mr. Alfred Cardona

Like Mr. Vlado Pejovic, Mr. Atanas Marinov also lasted only one season as Birkirkara once again appointed Mr. Alfred Cardona for the 2000-2001 season. In this season the only memorable event was when Birkirkara managed to qualify for the First Round of the UEFA Cup after they eliminated FC Lokomotivi Tbilisi of Georgia in the Qualifying Round.

Season 2001-2002 - Mr. Alfred Cardona & Mr. Stephen Azzopardi

Mr. Alfred Cardona extended his stay to the 2001-2002 season but he had to unexpectedly step down from his position due to health problems. However, after he recovered he rejoined Birkirkara FC to form part of the technical staff after Birkirkara FC had appointed Mr. Stephen Azzopardi as their new Head Coach.

Season 2002-2003 till Season 2006-2007 - Mr. Stephen Azzopardi

Under the guidance of Mr. Azzopardi, Birkirkara wrote another page in their history. In his first season with the Club, 'The Stripes' won the only honour that Birkirkara had failed to win, the FA Trophy, when they managed to beat Sliema Wanderers. The joy continued a few days later when Birkirkara beat the Champions Hibernians in the Super Cup.

Without any doubt, Mr. Azzopardi will be remembered for the 12 honours won under his five year spell, which consists of 1 Premier League, 3 FA Trophies, 5 Super Cups, 1 Lowenbrau Cup and 2 Super 5 Cups. This makes Mr. Azzopardi the must successful coach in the Club's history. However, after a disappointing league campaign in the first two rounds in the 2006-2007 season, Mr. Azzopardi resigned from his position.

Season 2006-2007 - Mr. Jan Artz

After this resignation, the Birkirkara FC committee appointed Mr. Jan Artz, who was a former Floriana FC Head Coach and left a very good impression with the Greens thanks to his coaching skills.

However, his adventure with our club lasted for just few days as in his debut as Birkirkara FC Head Coach, 'The Stripes' were humiliated by Marsaxlokk with a 6-1 score and the committee fired Mr. Artz.

Season 2006-2007 till Season 2008-2009 - Mr. John Buttigieg

Birkirkara were searching for a suitable coach who could handle the pressure and bring results. This role fell on the former International player Mr. John Buttigieg. One should say that Birkirkara made an impressive improvement and in fact Birkirkara only lost one match till the end of the Premier League.

His first season was a satisfactory one from the beginning, as Birkirkara made a re-shuffle in the squad and gave more chance to their youngsters. 'The Stripes' ended in the 3rd place in the Premier League but they achieved the unexpected, when they clinched their fourth FA Trophy after a 4-2 win over champions Valletta and then beat Hamrun in the final.

If the first season was a positive one, the 2008-2009 season was completely the opposite. Although 'The Stripes' opened the season by winning the Euro Challenge Cup, they were beaten in the Super Cup final by Valletta and in the Premier League Birkirkara collected the least points in the previous 8 season. In the FA Trophy Birkirkara were eliminated in the Semi Finals with a 2-0 score by Valletta

After the Malta Football Association contacted the Birkirkara Head Coach Mr. Buttigieg to lead the Maltese National Team, he stepped down from his position as Birkirkara Coach and the Birkirkara FC Committee were right with a gap to fill.

Season 2009-2010 till Season 2010-2011 - Mr. Paul Zammit

The newly formed Birkirkara FC Committee began the search for a suitable, experienced coach to take the Birkirkara squad under his wing. After considering several options, the choice fell onto the former Valletta Head Coach Mr. Paul Zammit, assisted by Mr. Branko Nisevic who agreed terms with our club for two years.

In his first year, In the 2009-2010 season, Mr. Zammit did the unexpected and went above all the expectations when with a team formed of several promising youngsters, 'The Stripes' managed to win their third Premier League title.

In the following 2010-2011 season, Mr. Zammit was in the helm of the team when Birkirkara wrote a historical page when they managed to win a match in the Second Qualification Round of the UEFA Champions League after they had advanced by beating Santa Coloma with a 4-3 score. In the Premier League campaign 'The Stripes' disappointed and failed to give a harsh challenge to defend their title. In the U*BET FA Trophy, Birkirkara also disappointed as they were eliminated in the Semi Final.

Season 2011-2012 - Mr. Patrick Curmi

Following the dissapointing 2010-2011 season, the Birkirkara FC committee did not renew Mr. Zammit and Mr. Nisevic's contracts and the same committee appointed the former Marsaxlokk Head Coach, Mr. Patrick Curmi.

Mr. Curmi's spell with our Club was not as satisfactory as expected. In the beginning of the 2011-2012 League campaign Birkirkara failed to impress and the Birkirkara FC committee decided to terminate the contract of this coach.

Season 2011-2013 till Season 2014-2015 - Mr. Paul Zammit

The successor of Mr. Curmi was, once again, Mr. Paul Zammit who rejoined our club four months after his contract was not renewed. He was presented to the Club members in a rally where members came to wish the best of luck to Mr. Zammit in his second spell with our Club.

Birkirkara won the fourth league in the 2012-2013 season and the committee decided to offer Mr. Zammit a new three-year deal which he agreed to on Sunday, 2 June 2013.

However, the Birkirkara FC committee and Mr. Paul Zammit reached an agreement to part ways after the 2014-2015, few weeks after the Stripes won their fourth FA Trophy. Under the guidance of Mr. Zammit, the Club won two BOV Premier League titles, one FA Trophy and two BOV Super Cups.

Season 2015-2016 - Mr. Giovanni Tedesco

After the Club parted ways with Mr. Paul Zammit, the Club appointed the former Floriana FC Coach, Mr. Giovanni Tedesco as the Club’s Head Coach for the next two seasons.

Mr. Giovanni Tedesco’s adventure with our Club started on a brilliant note. The Stripes eliminated Armenian side, Ulisses FC in the first round of the UEFA Europa League, when, following a goal-less draw at home, they registered a 3-1 victory in the away leg, to make it to the next round.

In the second qualifying round, following a narrow 1-0 away defeat to West Ham United FC in the away match, Mr. Tedesco went down in history on the 23 July, when the Stripes in front of a packed National Stadium defeated the English side with a 1-0 score, only to be eliminated by a penalty shoot-out.

However, the Stripes had a somehow disappointing league campaign in the opening fourteen matches and the Club parted ways with Mr. Tedesco on Thursday, 10 December.

Season 2015-2016 till Season 2016-2017 - Mr. Drazen Besek

Croatian Coach Mr. Drazen Besek was appointed the new Club’s Head Coach on Tuesday, 29 December 2016 after he agreed a short-term contract till the end of the season.

Besek guided the team to a respective third place in the BOV Premier League. By finishing in the third position, the Club obtained participation in the first round of the UEFA Europa League, and this enabled the Club’s record of consecutive participations in European Competitions to be extended.

Following his satisfactory first five-months with our Club, the committee offered Besek a one-season extension, and he signed his fresh contract on the 12 June 2016.

In the start of his second season, Besek wrote history with our Club as Birkirkara FC became the first Maltese team to reach the third round of the UEFA Europa League. The Stripes eliminated NK Siroki Brijeg in the first round and went on eliminating Hearts of Midlothian in the second round. Birkirkara were eliminated by Krasnodar in the third round with a 6-1 aggregate score.

Despite high expectations, the Stripes had a poor campaign in the league and were also eliminated from the FA Trophy at an early third-round stage by St. Andrew’s FC. The disappointing league run and FA Trophy exit led to the committee to part ways with the Croatian Coach in the first week of December.

Season 2016-2017 - Mr. Nikola Jaros

After the Club parted ways with Coach Drazen Besek, Nikola Jaros, who served as his assistant coach during his spell with our Club, was appointed as the new Head Coach. He signed a one year and a half contract on Tuesday, 6 December 2016.

During his six-month spell with our Club, Nikola led the team to finish in the third place with sixty-two points, nine under Champions Hibernians. He guided the team in nineteen matches, in which the team won eleven matches, drew five matches and lost three matches. His contract with the Club expired at the end of the season.

Season 2017-2018 - Mr. Peter Pullicino

The Club appointed Mr. Peter Pullicino as the Club's Head Coach on a two year contract with our Club on Thursday, 1 June 2017. Peter Pullicino was chosen to fill the gap left by Nikola Jaros, whose contract had expired at the end of the season.

Mr. Pullicino's spell with our Club was quite a short one, as a 1-1 draw against Floriana FC and a 2-0 defeat against Gzira United FC, led the committee to part ways with Mr. Pullicino.

Season 2017-2018 till Season 2018-2019 - Mr. Paul Zammit

Mr. Paul Zammit made his return for the third time as the Birkirkara FC Head Coach on Thursday, 1 September 2017. Mr. Zammit signed a two-year contract with our Club.

The first season turned out to be very satisfactory, despite a disappointing start, as the Stripes managed to secure a place in European competitions and reached the final of the FA Trophy.

However, season 2018-2019 proved to be very difficult as an early exit in the UEFA Europa League and a disappointing league campaign in the first months prompted the club to stop the coach from his duties.

Season 2018-2019 - Mr. John Arne Riise

Birkirkara FC appointed Mr. John Arne Riise as the new Sporting Director on Saturday, 5 January 2019. Mr. Riise, new to Maltese football, needed no introduction following his successful playing career.

His spell with our club was quite short, as less than three months after, he gave his resignation for personal reasons. During his time with our club, he won four matches, draw three matches and lost one match.

Season 2018-2019 - Mr. Mark Buttigieg

Following the unexpected exit of Mr. John Arne Riise, the club appointed Mr. Mark Buttigieg as the new club's Head Coach, after he was serving in the role of an assistant coach in the last two seasons.

His spell lasted just three weeks as he gave his resignation on Thursday, 18 April 2019. During his three matches in charge, the Stripes won one match and lost two matches.

Season 2018-2019 till Season 2019-2020 - Mr. John Buttigieg

In a season full of changes in the technical department, Mr. John Buttigieg was re-appointed the Birkirkara FC Head Coach on Thursday, 18 April with a two-year contract.

The first few months of Season 2018-2019 finished in disappointment as the Stripes finished in the seventh place of the BOV Premier League and eliminated in the Semi-Final of the FA Trophy.

Season 2019-2020, which was his first season from the beginning, was short-lived as following a narrow defeat against Floriana FC and a draw against Senglea Athletic FC, the club terminated his contract following a mutual agreement.

Season 2019-2020 till Present - Mr. Andre Paus

Mr. Andre Paus, the former Valletta FC Coach in Season 2013-2014, was appointed the new Birkirkara FC Head Coach on Monday, 9 September with a contract till the end of Season 2019-2020.