The Maltese Table Football team delivered an impressive performance at the World Cup in Paris, France, securing one silver and three bronze medals while competing against players from 28 countries.

Mark Gauci produced an outstanding run in the Open Category, reaching the final where he was defeated 3–1 by Spain’s Carlos Flores. Gauci had earlier secured a place in the final by defeating fellow Maltese player Samuel Bartolo 2–0 in the semi-finals, with Bartolo taking the bronze medal.

Gauci had also eliminated the 2024 world champion Dimitri Dimopoulos 2–1 in the quarter-finals. Bartolo reached the semi-finals after a dramatic 3–2 extra-time victory over Italy’s Mato Ciccarelli.

Jurgen Balzan qualified from his group and progressed to the Round of 16, where he was eliminated by Greece’s Dimopoulos. George Ebejer also advanced from his group before exiting in the Round of 32 following a defeat to England’s Kaspar Bennett.

In the Veterans Category, Charles Aquilina reached the quarter-finals before losing 1–0 to Greece’s Yannis Salamouris. Aquilina had previously recorded an impressive 4–1 victory over Germany’s Frank Stiller in the Round of 16.

John Zammit and Jason Pisani both reached the Round of 16, where they were defeated by Portugal’s Manuel Santos and Greece’s Alberto Di Maggio respectively. Patrick Pace competed in the group stage.

In the Under-20 Category, Robert Farrugia Randon progressed from his group and reached the Round of 16, where he lost 6–3 to Greece’s Giorgos Vlassopoulos.

Two Team Bronze Medals

Malta also enjoyed considerable success in the Team Categories, securing two bronze medals after both the Open and Veteran teams reached the semi-finals.

The Malta Open team enjoyed an excellent run, defeating Scotland, Ireland and Australia, all by 4–0 scorelines. In the quarter-finals, Malta overcame Greece by a one-goal margin after the match ended 2–2. Their run came to an end in the semi-finals, where they suffered a 4–0 defeat against Italy.

The Veteran team topped their group after victories over Japan (4–0) and Spain (2–1). Malta then defeated England 2–1 in the quarter-finals before narrowly missing out on a place in the final against Greece. The semi-final ended 1–1, with Greece progressing after winning by a one-goal margin.

The Malta Open team consisted of Samuel Bartolo, Mark Gauci, Jamie Bonnici, George Ebejer and Jurgen Balzan.

The Veteran team was made up of Charles Aquilina, Jason Pisani, John Zammit, Massimo Cremona, Patrick Pace and Mario Camilleri.

The Maltese contingent was led by Emanuel Camilleri and Josef Camilleri, with the team returning from Paris having secured four medals and produced a series of notable performances on the world stage.