 MEET THE COMMITTEE - ROBERT MIZZI

1) Can you tell us something about yourself (your personal life, age, marital status, work/profession)? What are your favourite past‑times apart from football? What was your favourite holiday destination? What are three words that describe you?

I was born on the 31 May 1968 – just 2 days after Manchester United won the European Cup against Benfica at Wembley. I am employed as a Knowledge Services Manager with one of the leading law firms in Malta where I have been working for the last 12 years. I have also been a visiting lecturer at the University of Malta for the past 18 years.

I grew up playing football in the streets and then with the local teams and football was my passion from a very young age. Over the years, I developed a love for table‑tennis which led me to compete in the national leagues in various stages of my life. Apart from sports, my hobbies include also travelling, combined with trying the wines that originate from the places I visit. Wine is a more recent passion which I am still learning about. It is a fascinating world which fits in perfectly with my willingness to travel and discover new cultures.

My favourite destination must be Australia. Apart from having most of my family over there, this continent is fascinating and there is something for everyone. I am definitely planning on visiting again and this time, I’ll spend more time discovering their excellent wines.

If I had to choose three words to describe me I think these would be realist, inquisitive and tenacious.

2) How did you start supporting United? What is your best memory of United? How many times have you visited Old Trafford? Who is your favourite current player and club legend? If there was one thing you could change at United, what would it be? If you were Man Utd manager and had an unlimited budget, which player would you bring to United and why? Which team would you support if Man Utd did not exist?

I started supporting United in 1976 when they lost the FA Cup final to Southampton. My late Dad, a founding member of this club, had gone to Wembley and as an 8‑year‑old boy, watching my dad coming back from the UK with sadness in his eyes made me fall in love with Manchester United. One year later, we won the FA Cup against Liverpool, destroying their treble dream and my dad got me a replica of the full kit worn for that match. The love affair was well and truly confirmed – forever!

I am finding it very hard to pick up a favourite player from the current squad. If you asked me this question one year ago it would have been Bruno Fernandes but this season he has not been able to reproduce his initial form.

If I had to change just one thing at United, it would be the owners. I firmly believe that we will not see the glory days again under the Glazers.

These days, I am not watching much football apart from United so I would be hesitant to pick a specific player. What I can say is that a quality central defensive midfielder is needed. I would go for a young promising talent that has unlimited energy but is also a good footballer who can read the game.

It is difficult to imagine football without Manchester United – I would support Hamilton Academicals if United did not exist. My dad had very good friends familiar with that club, and I had their kit and tracksuit growing up as well. Go Accies!

3) What attracted you to join the Supporters’

Club? What made you contest the

Committee election? Describe your role in the club. Why would you recommend a

United supporter to join the world’s oldest

Man Utd supporters’ club? few members who remembers the very first premises in Valletta and then was a regular visitor to the club in St. Lucia Street. As a boy and teenager hungry for anything United, I used to be looking forward to watch the recording of the match from the previous weekend which arrived from OT on a VHS tape in a padded envelope delivered to my dad who used to work at the post office at that time. Times have changed!

After many years of thinking about joining the committee, I finally made up my mind and approached the current President Joe Tedesco. I eventually joined the committee in 2020 and took up the membership secretary post which I still occupy today. It has been a difficult start to my time as part of the committee as just a few months later, my dad passed away and immediately after, we were hit by the pandemic, but I have nevertheless witnessed a great deal of work being done during these difficult times and the dedication of the committee members and the support of our members is something I can vouch for because I have seen it happen and am now an integral part of this one big family. I am currently working on migrating our membership records to a new database that will hopefully allow us to facilitate communication with members and improve our data.

One of my objectives in the coming years is trying to come up with ideas on how we can entice more United supporters to join our club. The committee is working very hard to make our club a home away from home and I think we are succeeding.

To conclude, I would just like to say that in just over 2 years as part of the committee, I now consider the MUSC Malta as part of my life. In all honesty, the club has always been part of my life since I was a small kid and now, forming part of this hard‑working committee, I am feeling, more than ever, an integral part of this family. It is like a cumulation of my life‑ long journey and I hope to be able to continue giving my service in the years to come.