Buttigieg was born on 18 February 1956 in the Maltese town of Paola, and began playing football as a child on the field behind the Christ the King Parish Church.
[1] As a teenager, he joined De Paule Band Club of the Paola District League, a local competition organized to identify talent for Hibernians' youth teams.
[1] In 1972–73, he and the rest of the squad were promoted en bloc to the first team, which was playing in the Maltese Premier League (then known as the First Division).
[1] Buttigieg made his first international appearance with Malta in the group stage of UEFA Euro 1980 qualification, debuting on 25 February 1979 during their incredible 0–0 draw on home soil against eventual champions West Germany.
Spain had only scored 12 goals in their previous seven matches, but famously defeated Malta 12–1 on 21 December 1983 in Seville to qualify for the final tournament, where they finished as runners-up.