During the summer of 1965, the Malta Football Association together with the affiliated clubs decided not to play at Empire Stadium following an argument with the management over the distribution of gate-money.

The stadium was regarded as unsuitable to host league football matches as the lack of security at the ground made it easy for the fans to cause trouble.

The site has been subject to a proposed development by local property consortium, MIDI plc, for a number of years.

[2] Gzira United, who have been running the premises since the early 1990s, expressed the willingness to redevelop the clubs premises, including the stadium, on a number of times, but the issue of the legal title over the area remains a stumbling block for the club.

This is commonly referred to as the Gzira football pitch and nowadays is used to host other events, such as the annual Luna Park and, more recently, the World Cup Village.