Haley Bugeja announced that she had agreed to a new three-year contract with Italian Serie A giants Inter last week. The talented Malta forward sat down with Gianluca Lia on the SportsDesk podcast, where she discussed her career achievements but also spoke on her ambitions for the future with the Nerazzurre and the national team….
Haley Bugeja may only be 21 years old, but the young forward has already done enough to establish herself as Malta’s top female football player.
After bursting into the scene with Mġarr United, Bugeja signed for Sassuolo, and the Maltese forward enjoyed a fairytale first season with the Italian Serie A femminile side that caught the attention of the world’s sporting media, who defined her as one of the world’s hottest prospects.
After her stint with Sassuolo, Bugeja headed to the United States with Orlando Pride but she struggled to leave her mark, and in 2023, she was acquired by Inter.
The Italian club has been impressed by Bugeja’s talents, and even though the Maltese player had still another year left on her contract, the Italian club’s administrators moved quickly to tie down the prolific forward to a new three-year contract.
“On the day I signed the new contract, I felt the weight and the responsibility of wearing the club’s shirt,” Bugeja told the SportsDesk podcast.
“It’s true that Inter’s women’s selection have not reached the same heights as their male counterparts, but last season, the team entered into the club’s history books as we qualified for the UEFA Women’s Champions League for the first time.
“It was a great achievement and I was proud as a Maltese player to be part of that squad that reached such a prestigious objective.
“Since I joined Inter, I immediately felt that the club’s coaches and technical staff had a lot of faith in my ability and I had no doubt that I would go through some great experiences with the club.
“At the start of this year, I was approached by the club’s top hierarchy, who offered me a new contract, and that was another major sign of the belief the club has in my talent, as I still had another year on my contract.
“I don’t take anything foregranted, as I know that a football career is not that long and for a Maltese player to play for an important club like Inter is not something that happens every day and is something that I still have to process.
“During the past two years, I worked a lot on myself, and now I feel happy at Inter and I am determined to give everything I have so that we continue to enhance the name of our club in women’s football.”
For Bugeja, the 2025-26 season is set to start in the best possible way as she will be hoping to play a key role in Inter’s UEFA Champions League journey, where they face Norwegian side SK Brann in the second qualifying round.
“I am really looking forward to it and at the same time feel a lot of responsibility to help the team in such a prestigious competition,” Bugeja said.
“When I was still playing in Malta with Mġarr, I always dreamed of helping the club win the league championship and qualify for the Champions League, as that is the highest level of football you can play in a club.
“I have been playing with a foreign club for the past five years and playing in this competition was something that I always wanted to fulfil. But I always felt confident that if things went my way, I would fulfil this dream.
“I believe that I have repaid the club’s faith in my ability and now I am looking forward to playing an important part in the upcoming Champions League campaign, and hopefully we manage to advance in the competition.
“Apart from the Champions League, we also have great ambitions for the league championship. After finishing as runners-up last season, the goal has to be to challenge for the league title.
“We have a great group of players and I am so excited to see what the future holds for us.”
Season 2024-25 has provided some memorable moments for Bugeja, from playing the Milan derby at the San Siro to reaching its climax on the final day of the season when netting the winner against newly-crowned champions Juventus at the Allianz Stadium.
Bugeja said that she has yet to process all the emotions of the past few weeks.
“To be honest, I am still lost for words having experienced such beautiful moments this season,” Bugeja said.
“I never thought in my life I would have the chance to play at the San Siro or the Allianz Stadium. I don’t want to think much about them as I don’t want to get caught up. When these kinds of matches, you just focus on the match, but then you step into the San Siro, you look at the stands which keep going higher and higher, it’s just amazing.
“Against Milan, we ended the derby in a draw, and I never had great luck against them.”
Bugeja said that against Juventus, she had a gut feeling that she could have an impact on the match against the newly-crowned champions.
“That morning when I woke up, I told myself, why shouldn’t I come on as a substitute and have an impact and be us who will celebrate and end the season in the best possible way,” Bugeja, who so far has scored three goals against Juventus, said.
“And that is what happened as I came on as a late substitute and scored the winner in a 2-1 win! These are achievements that you only dream of, and I’m so grateful that I managed to experience them.”
Bugeja feels that since starting her football career abroad with Sassuolo she has come a long way.
“I feel that I have matured a lot since making the move to Sassuolo,” Bugeja said.
“I arrived as a winger, but today I can play as no.10 or in the no.9 position and most importantly, I learnt to be a team player.
“Honestly, today I don’t have any problem playing in either position unless it’s for the good of the team. There are still many areas of my game that I need to improve, and putting in extra work in training certainly makes a huge difference.”
Bugeja may not be playing her football in Malta but still follows how the women’s movement is developing on our islands and believes that there is still a lot of potential that can be maximised yet.
“There is no doubt that the league championship has become much more competitive with four teams battling for the title,” Bugeja said.
“As regards the national team, since I started to be part of the set-up six years ago, there is a great difference. There is a more professional approach between us during training and its great.
“I never thought that with the national team we would be able to break a number of boundaries but today I believe that the sky is the limit for this team. There are so many players who are plying their trade abroad, and are bringing back their experiences that are inspiring our young players.
“My message to our young players has always been that if you have the opportunity to go and play abroad, just go for it, and if you don’t enjoy it, you can always come back.
“But if it’s something that you like and it works out, it will be the best thing you could ever do.”
Last May, Bugeja scored the all-important goal that handed Malta a second promotion to League B in the UEFA Nations League.
That strike pushed her just two goals away from the all-time record set by the legendary Dorianne Theuma, who netted 26 goals.
Asked whether becoming Malta’s all-time top-scorer is something she thinks about, Bugeja said: “I don’t think much about it as I have a lot of confidence in myself and I am sure that the goals will eventually come to break the record.
“For me, when I put on the national team shirt, the main focus is always to ensure the team produces a strong performance and the team gets a good result, that is the priority.
“Obviously, become Malta’s all-time leading scorer for the national team is something I really aspire to reach and is something I never thought I could fulfil.
“But as I said, I believe that everything will fall into its place if I keep working hard and do the right things,” added Bugeja, who is the youngest hat-trick goal scorer for the national team.
“Winning promotion at the National Stadium was the stuff of dreams for us and will keep them in me forever. But what I want is that we continue to raise the profile of the national team and become football idols for younger players so they are inspired by our success and are driven to reach and maybe improve on our achievements.”
National team aspirations
Turning her sights on Malta’s upcoming campaign in the UEFA Nations League, Bugeja said that the team needs to show more belief in their ability and if they do that they can aspire to reach the goal of preserving their place in League B.
“I think in our first campaign in League B, there was a bit lack of belief from us players,” Bugeja said.
“We certainly could have defended better in some matches; luck didn’t smile at us as we conceded some late goals, so it’s a mix of everything.
“But now we know what to expect, and it’s a great opportunity to show how much we have matured as a team. The goal for us is clear: to keep our place in League B and we are geared up to reach that goal.”
Bugeja ended up this interview but showing her gratitude towards her sponsors, namely Gasan Mamo, Visa and Nouve.
“I feel blessed to have several sponsors, such as VISA, Gasan Mamo and Nouve, who help me in my day-to-day life,” Bugeja said.
“These are things that one aspires to have; if they can help you not just in your career but also in your day-to-day life, why not.
“Obviously, you need some luck to meet the right people at the right time and have a family that supports you a lot. Having a family that supports you always is a blessing, as you don’t feel any pressure that you can disappoint anyone if you fail to succeed.
“But I hope that everyone will come together here in Malta to try and lift the women’s game here, as there is a lot of potential.”
A special thanks goes out to the sponsors:
- Gasan Mamo Insurance: www.gasanmamo.com
- VISA: https://www.visa.com.mt/“
Author
Steve Bezzina
July 28, 2025 at 11:21 am
Great podcast and Bugeja is one to be admired and followed. I love her comments “chase your dreams” “believe in yourself”, however, and with regret, in Malta you need to make it to Malta national team from young age to have the full potential of growing up and to chase your dreams. Once again, and regrettably, the selections done at young age depend not just as a player but also, which club you play with, which school you attend to, which coach, coaches you ect ect….. there are too many young players that are never watched and too many young players that are never selected not even for a trial with national team.