Hibernians

Hibernians Football Club is a Maltese association football club based in the town of Paola. The club played one season in 1922 as Constitutionals FC, representing the pro-British Constitutional Party. They started up again in the 1927–28 season and became a top amateur side, winning the Amateur League in 1930–31. Meanwhile, the Constitutional Party had upset the Catholic Church so much that, in May 1930, Catholics were told not to vote for the party. The football club changed its name a year later to Hibernians Football Club as a nod to Hibernian, the club founded by Irish Catholics in Edinburgh. They won their first match as Hibernians 2–1, against HMS Antelope in October 1931. They had to wait for a place to become available in the professional league, but in January 1933 they joined the league with a 3–1 victory over Sliema Rangers. They have stayed in the top division ever since. Hibernians then won their first league title in 1961, with a team featuring Maltese international players like brothers Louis and Eddie Theobald and Freddie Mizzi. Around 1970 English football legend Sir Stanley Matthews managed Hibernians. He led the club to a League title and two Maltese FA Trophies. Hibernians faced a long period of decline followed the success of the 1980s to the end of the decade. Hibernians have a futsal team, which plays in Malta's top futsal league, the Premier Futsal League.