On November 21, Wales will take on the USA in its first fixture in the FIFA World Cup 2022. For decades, the idea of Wales qualifying for the tournament felt like a pipe dream.
But in May of this year, Rob Page and his men ended 64 years of heartache with a 1-0 win against Ukraine at Cardiff City Stadium, claiming their place in the finals in Qatar this winter.
With only a few weeks to go, we’ve looked at the historical and economical significance of Wales making it to the World Cup, as well as what the team’s most ardent fans had to say on what it meant to them.
To understand the significance of this year’s World Cup, we have to look at the first - and for a very long time, the only time Wales had made it to the World Cup. The 1958 tournament in Sweden would see French forward Just Fontaine score the most goals in a single edition of the FIFA World Cup with 13 goals in six matches, and mark the arrival of a young Edson Arantes do Nascimento - also known as Pelé.
Wales made it to Sweden through a series of bizarre events, mainly consisting of political conflict at the time. In a play-off for the last remaining place at the finals, Wales would compete against Israel - a team whose opponents had all but refused to play against them.
Israel was able to overtake Turkey, Egypt, Indonesia and Sudan to win the only place allocated to Africa and Asia without even kicking a ball. In response, Fifa brought in new rules in which every qualifying team - except for the holders and host, would have to play at least one game to get there.
All European group runners-up, including Wales, were placed into a draw to find out who would compete against Israel for the final place. Uruguay and Italy withdrew, which saw Belgium subsequently selected to take on Israel in a two-legged tie.
But in what seemed to be a common occurrence at the time, Belgium also declined the offer to play against Israel. As a result, a further draw saw Jimmy Murphy and his men eventually paired with Israel. It was then decided that a two-legged tie would take place in January and February of 1958.
The Wales squad headed to Israel for the first leg, and thanks to goals from Ivor Allchurch and Dave Bowen, the team was handed an impressive 2-0 win. 38,000 fans came to watch the return match at Ninian Park, where Allchurch once again scored a goal before Tottenham’s Cliff Jones completed a victory with another one, claiming another 2-0 win. With a 4-0 aggregate victory, Cymru was heading to the World Cup.
During the tournament, Wales played against Hungary and Mexico, with a result of 1-1 against both teams respectively. It was a 0-0 score against the host country of Sweden, and then a win against Hungary with a 2-1. Wales was now embarking on a quarter final against Brazil.
On June 18, 1958, 25,923 fans were in attendance at the Nya Ullevi Stadium in Sweden’s second largest city of Gothenburg. After 66 minutes of play, the match was decided by a single goal from Pelé. The goal would secure the South American country’s place in the semifinals and consequently their historic win in the World Cup.
In a first person piece for the Guardian in 2009, Welsh footballer Mel Charles looked back at that fateful game and what it meant to him. In the piece, he wrote: “England and Scotland were already out, it was just us and Northern Ireland - who were knocked out on the same day by France. You'd think it would be a big thing but I don't think anyone in Britain realised we were even playing.
“I don't remember there being any Welsh fans out in Sweden, and on the day we came home, we came into Swansea station and the ticket collector said: ‘Have we been on holiday again then?’ He didn't have a clue.”
For 58 years, Wales would never qualify in a major tournament, and for 64 years, qualifying for the World Cup also slipped out of their reach. The Spirit of ‘58 would become an emblem of hope, particularly in the dark days of football.
Barry-born football fan, Tim Hartley, spent most of his youth watching Wales play at Ninian Park. At the age of 15, he stood at the Grange end when Wales played at the famous UEFA play-off against Yugoslavia in May, 1976, which ended “in a riot” and Wales consequently banned from playing at Ninian.
“Back in the 70s, watching Wales’ football was very different to now,” Tim said. “That game turned into a riot at the end, but there was something about that game and about that stadium.
“Everyone stood shoulder to shoulder, there was a feeling that you were an army in some way. The problem was that during the 70s and 80s, the football was very poor back then. And yet, it felt like we were a part of something even when we were losing”.
Tim’s passion for the game would continue for years to come. The journalist and author would travel all over the world to watch his team play - from Bosnia to the US, from Italy to Azerbaijan. And wherever he went, he would find fans just as passionate as he was.
He said: “I would meet a lot of the lads abroad that I would never meet back in Wales. There was something special about that.
“In 2002, we went to Azerbaijan where there were only 14 of us and I could name them all. We would chant: ‘We will never qualify, we will never qualify’. The point was that we didn’t care, it was only a few of us that would go on Wales away trips but there was a sense of unity there.
“You were a part of something, a part of a team, a part of a big family because everybody knew each other. But at the same time, it felt like we were living in history.”
Wales’ football team would spend years playing in front of low crowds and with very low FIFA rankings for decades. Wales would miss out in the World Cup play-offs such as in 1977, 1985 and 1993.
“Never did it cross my mind that we would ever be able to recreate 1958,” Tim added. “I’d sometimes play this game where I’d ask - either Cardiff makes it to the FA Cup final or Wales will make it to a real big tournament.
“I’d go for Wales in a big tournament, but then I would say, that will never happen will it? And then it did happen, didn’t it?”
Wales made its first major tournament appearance for 58 years at Euro 2016, reaching the semi-finals in France under the management of Chris Coleman. The Red Dragons would then also qualify for the delayed Euro 2020 finals and made the round of 16 last summer.
Many have credited the late Gary Speed for putting Wales on the path to success. His appointment in 2010 came at a time when the FAW wanted Welsh football to be part of everyday life for the public.
For Speed, getting results was the obvious top priority, but the manager was also keen to understand the bigger picture. Being a big people person, Speed went on the road to try and understand the supporter base through various ways, including their efforts in coming from north and west Wales to cheer on their team.
Eventually, he transformed the ecosystem in Welsh football by investing in young players, encouraging the team to embrace Welsh culture, such as learning the national anthem, and ultimately persuading people to invest in their national football team.
Coming on the back of two successive Euro finals appearances, Tim Hartley believes that we are now living in the “golden age” of football as the team head into the World Cup this winter. “People want to be a part of this now, if you can’t be in Qatar, come to Wrexham,” he said.
“I’ve had the best of it - I’ve had the ups and downs. And if we maintain this, which I really hope we do or even if we just touch on it, that would be great.
“But the most important thing is that more people are playing it more than ever before, we have good players, the international game is on the up, the women’s football team - which is so important, is doing extremely well.”
As Gary Speed showed, the key to a team’s success is not only investment in the team itself, but in the culture and fan base that comes with it. An independent report recently showed that football was the number one sport in Wales, showing interest in the Cymru international teams continuing to grow and a notable increase in Women’s National Team interest, which had doubled since 2016.
And with an increase in interest, perhaps now more than ever it is important to bring forward relevant initiatives to capitalise on that interest. With the Cymru men’s national team putting the country on the global stage with the qualification of FIFA World Cup, FAW announced that all project profit from FIFA’s prize money of £4 million would be invested directly into grassroots facilities across Wales.
When announcing this new funding, FAW Chief Executive, Noel Mooney said: “As we strive to create a leading football nation, it’s vitally important that the FAW and its funding partners step up and take full advantage of the opportunity that qualification for the World Cup presents us. Grassroots facilities for football across Cymru are particularly poor and our key strategic objective is to tackle this now.
“We want to build grassroots clubs across Cymru that act as wellness spaces for the community and to drive the Cymru football movement forward through health, culture, music, language, sustainability, equality, diversity and inclusion. We cannot do this without significant support from Welsh Government, Local Authorities and DCMS but today we demonstrate our complete commitment to addressing the chronic issues in Cymru’s grassroots football facilities to enable girls and boys to play football in decent conditions.”
On top of this, the Welsh Government has also invested £1.8 million among 19 projects for its World Cup Partner Support Fund. The projects include a festival of creativity and culture, a new Football Museum for Wales in Wrexham, a concert in North America, as well as an initiative to deliver a bilingual range of events for the Boys and Girls clubs across Wales.
And with a global stage, comes a global audience. In regards to viewership, FIFA officially confirmed that the 2018 World Cup in Russia was watched by a combined 3.57 billion viewers. That is more than half of the global population aged four and over.
The final between France and Croatia was seen live by a combined 1.12 billion viewers worldwide. According to the President of FIFA, Gianni Infantino, the 2022 World Cup in Qatar is set to be the “most-watched” in the tournament’s history, with the president projecting that around five billion viewers will tune in.
For a football fan like Roopa Vyas from Caerphilly, she feels that the global stage will allow Wales football team and its fans the opportunity to showcase their identity and culture. She will be heading to Qatar this winter, with the hopes of watching Wales play against England at Ahmad Bin Ali Stadium.
“It’s a huge stage,” she said. “2016 was a huge step going into the Euros, then we did it again, and then it felt like: ‘right, what’s next on the list?’
“This is about putting Wales on the map. Some countries might not know the difference between Wales and England, or know anything about Wales. To finally be on that stage, show that we can play football and we are Wales, fans and the players together representing the country, will be amazing.
She added: “I think for us it’s about getting there and being there, that’s the achievement and anything else is just an added bonus. Who knows how long I’ll be there, but for now, my plan is to go to Dubai for a few days and then fly to Qatar for the England v Wales game. Hopefully, we will win that one - that’s my only expectation, I want that revenge against England.”
Mared Jones from Waunfawr in Gwynedd agrees. Having followed Welsh football since the age of five, she’ll also be heading to Qatar to support her team alongside her father and brother, who are also avid fans. She said: “The younger generation are being spoiled - Euro 2016, Euro 2020 and now the World Cup. It’s amazing to see our football team achieving such success and I hope this will last for a long time to come.
“To reach the World Cup stage is a massive step. It will put Wales on the map. Many people believe that Wales is a part of England, so in some ways it is a good thing that Wales is in the same group as England because it shows that we are a completely different country. It’s the golden opportunity to show the world who we are and what we do, and everything that comes with that - our own identity, our own language and our own culture.”
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