By Daniel Parker So, an England football team has finally won a major tournament and it hasn’t been a totally unbearable experience for the rest of us (something I never thought I’d write). The enhanced profile this summer’s European Championships has enjoyed – partly as a result of media interest in the English team’s progress, […]

By David Williams Gareth Bale has debuted for his new Major League team, Los Angeles Football Club, as the side triumphed over Nashville Soccer Club 2-1. Bale was unveiled by Los Angeles FC earlier in the month, having agreed to a one-year deal which will help his preparations for Wales’ World Cup finals appearance in […]

Gareth Bale will spend three months living the American dream – before proving a World Cup nightmare for England. That’s the bold prediction of Bale’s long-term Wales teammate Joe Allen, who believes his national captain’s move to the MLS is already re-energising Bale’s career. Allen – who has also switched clubs this summer from Stoke City back to Swansea – reckons jettisoned Real Madrid star Bale’s move to Los Angeles FC has given the Wales skipper a new lease of life.

By David Williams Gareth Bale has revealed he is aiming to continue to represent Wales beyond this winter’s World Cup, with Euro 2024 a goal and even the 2026 World Cup a possibility. There had been suggestions Bale could retire after Qatar 2022 and that his 12-month contract at Los Angeles FC could be his […]

Joe Allen’s know-how will prove a vital asset for Swansea City this coming season, head coach Russell Martin has insisted. Allen could make the second Swansea debut of his career on Tuesday night in a pre-season game at Plymouth Argyle, a full 15 years after his first. The Wales midfielder, who last week sealed a return to his boyhood club from Stoke City, was part of the Swans squad that clinched promotion to the Premier League in 2008 and Martin reckons that kind of experience will prove invaluable, alongside the playing abilities that still make him a virtual certain starter for his country.

Swansea City’s Flynn Downes has revealed he feels as though he is dreaming after completing his £12m move to West Ham. The midfielder has joined the club he supported as a boy on a five-year deal for an officially undisclosed fee that depends on appearances. The 23-year-old lifelong Hammers fan has signed a deal that will keep him at the London Stadium until the summer of 2027, with a further one-year option.

Wales international Brennan Johnson has signed a new four-year contract with Premier League newcomers Nottingham Forest. Johnson, 21, scored 19 goals for Forest last season to help them earn promotion via the play-offs and reach the quarter-finals of the FA Cup. He then went on to help Wales reach their first World Cup finals in 64 years before bagging his first international goal against Belgium last month.

Gemma Grainger insisted Wales had taken some plus points from their draw with New Zealand in Spain, even if they came away with no goals. The Wales manager watched her team draw 0-0 in a friendly in Pinatar in their last game before their crucial World Cup qualifiers in September. Grainger’s squad are continuing preparations ahead of the final two qualifiers against Greece and Slovenia, where victories can guarantee a play-off place for the tournament.

Gareth Bale has excited Cardiff fans by visiting the Sky Bet Championship club’s Vale of Glamorgan base on their first day of pre-season training. Bale has been linked with a move to his hometown club following the end of his nine-year stay at Real Madrid. The five-time Champions League winner is a free agent and […]

So, the Ryan Giggs Wales era has officially ended. It was an announcement which almost certainly represents a full-stop conclusion to the strained 30-year association between the Cardiffian and his national football team. The word “officially” is important here: in both practical and emotional terms Robert Page is already Wales manager.

Profits made from Wales qualifying for the World Cup – expected to be around £4m – will go into improving grassroots facilities, the Football Association of Wales have pledged. The overall commercial revenue from Wales reaching their first finals of the tournament for 64 years could be at least £10m, it has been estimated. But the guaranteed part of that income – which comes from the FIFA prize money pot – will go straight into benefitting the game at lower levels.

By Harry Corish Wales football manager Rob Page believes he has seen the future for a bucket hat-wearing young generation being inspired to get active, passionate and knowledgeable about the power of sport. Having guided his country to the World Cup finals for the first time in 64 years, Page is convinced of the effect […]