The New Saints of Oswestry Town & Llansantffraid Football Club, commonly known as The New Saints or TNS FC, are a Welsh professional football club that play in the Cymru Premier, but are based completely within England, in Oswestry, Shropshire. They are the most successful club in the Welsh league structure, with 16 league titles to their name. Since the 2001–02 season, they have finished as champions or runners-up in every season, apart from 2008–09, where they finished third in the league. They became the first side playing in the Welsh league system to qualify for the group or league stage of any European competition after reaching the league phase of the UEFA Conference League for the first time in the 2024–25 season.
The Wales national football team represents Wales in international football. It is controlled by the Football Association of Wales (FAW), the governing body for football in Wales. They have been a member of FIFA since 1946 and a member of UEFA since 1954.
The Wales national women's football team represents Wales in international football. It is controlled by the Football Association of Wales (FAW), the governing body for football in Wales and the third-oldest national football association in the world, founded in 1876.
This article is about the particular significance of the year 1985 to Wales and its people.
Gwalia United Football Club is a Welsh women's football club playing in the FAWNL Southern Premier Division. The club was renamed Gwalia United prior to the start of the 2024–25 season. Prior to this, the club was most recently called Cardiff City Ladies F.C. but has also played as Llanedeyrn L.F.C., Inter Cardiff F.C. and Cardiff County L.F.C.
The Welsh Sports Hall of Fame (WSHOF) is a charitable organisation created to commemorate the sporting achievements and preserve the artefacts of Welsh athletes. It was established in 1980 from the memorabilia collection of Welsh radio commentator G. V. Wynne-Jones. Since 1990, inductees to the exclusive "Roll of Honour" have been chosen annually by a trustees committee comprising representatives from athletics, media, universities and museums. The organisation has also given awards to individuals for outstanding contribution to Welsh sport. In 2018 an extra award was added to commemorate the former chairman, Rhodri Morgan. The first 'Rhodri' was awarded to the City of Cardiff for their outstanding service and commitment to sporting excellence.
Sport in Wales plays a prominent role in Welsh culture. Like the other countries of the United Kingdom, Wales enjoys independent representation in major world sporting events such as the FIFA World Cup and in the Rugby World Cup, but competes as part of Great Britain in some other competitions, including the Olympics.
Jessica Anne Fishlock is a Welsh professional footballer and coach who plays as a midfielder for Seattle Reign FC and the Wales national team. She is Wales’s all-time record goal scorer. She previously played for Bristol Academy in England's FA Women's Super League, AZ Alkmaar in the Dutch Eredivisie, Glasgow City in the Scottish Women's Premier League, Melbourne Victory and Melbourne City in Australia's W-League, as well as Bundesliga club FFC Frankfurt in Germany.
Dame Elan Closs Stephens is a Welsh academic who has been a non-executive director of the BBC Board since 2017, and Chair of the BBC between 27 June 2023 and 4 March 2024. She is Electoral Commissioner for Wales and Pro-Chancellor of Aberystwyth University. She chairs the UNESCO International Prize for the Creative Economy panel.
Sophie Louise Ingle is a Welsh footballer who plays for the Women's Super League club Chelsea and is a former captain of the Wales national team. She has previously represented Bristol Academy, Cardiff City, and Liverpool. Ingle plays as either a defender or defensive midfielder.
Natasha Marie Harding is a retired Welsh footballer. Harding began her career with Cardiff City and has also played in the FA WSL for Bristol Academy and Manchester City.
Women's football in Wales is overseen by the Football Association of Wales and is affiliated with both the world (FIFA) and European (UEFA) football governing bodies. As such the national team are eligible to compete in the World Cup and the European Championship. The winners of the top tier league is invited to join the qualifying stage of the Champions League.
Cardiff City Football Club Women is a women's football club based in Cardiff, Wales. Affiliated with Cardiff City, the club competes in the Adran Premier, the top tier of Welsh women's football.
Lauren Louise Price is a Welsh professional boxer, former amateur boxer and former kickboxer and footballer. She has held the WBA, IBO, and Ring female welterweight World titles since 11 May 2024. She was the first-ever female British professional boxing champion having won the welterweight title on 6 May 2023 and holding it until vacating the belt when she became World champion. While representing Wales in the amateur sport she won a bronze medal at the 2014 Commonwealth Games, becoming the first Welsh woman to win a Commonwealth Games boxing medal. Four years later she surpassed this achievement by winning gold at the 2018 Commonwealth Games, followed by a gold at the 2019 World Championships. While representing Great Britain, she won gold medals at the 2019 European Games and 2020 Summer Olympics.
Nia Jones is an athlete who has represented Wales internationally at both netball and football. She won the FAW Young Player of the Year Award in 2011. She was nominated for the SportingWales Magazine and UWIC Rising Star Award in 2013. She currently plays for Adran Premier club Swansea City.
Rachel Susan Rowe is a Welsh professional footballer who plays as a forward for Women's Championship club Southampton and the Wales national team.
Nancy Margaret Edwards, is a British archaeologist and academic, who specialises in medieval archaeology and ecclesiastical history. From 2008 to 2020, she was Professor of Medieval Archaeology at Bangor University; having retired, she is now emeritus professor.
Laura O'Sullivan-Jones is a Welsh footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for Gwalia United, formerly Cardiff City who officially renamed/rebranded with effect from 1 June 2024 and the Wales national team.
Group B of the 2022 FIFA World Cup took place from 21 to 29 November 2022. The group consisted of national association football teams from England, Iran, the United States and Wales. Both England and the United States progressed to the round of 16 undefeated. England won the group, winning two games and drawing the other, while the United States won one game and drew the other two. Iran finished the group third, having won a game, with Wales finishing fourth with a single point.
The Wales bucket hat is a colourful bucket hat worn by supporters particularly of the Wales national football team. The hat was originally red, yellow and green, designed by Spirit of '58. It initially gained wide popularity during Wales's participation in the UEFA Euro 2016 championships. Other designs of the bucket hat have subsequently become available. Giant versions of the bucket hats were placed in city centres around Wales during the 2022 FIFA World Cup.
