FAW ACCOUNTS: Welsh football doubles revenues in five years – but misses World Cup and posts £5m loss as Euro 2028 bet takes shape

The Football Association of Wales has posted record revenues for the year ending June 2025, with turnover reaching £40.6m — up 25% on the previous record — as the governing body bets heavily on growth ahead of co-hosting Euro 2028.

But the strong headline figure comes alongside a £5m operating loss, which the FAW says is a deliberate consequence of investment rather than financial difficulty. The association’s chief finance officer acknowledged that the men’s national team’s failure to qualify for the World Cup remained a painful backdrop to otherwise positive numbers.

FAW Chief Finance and Operations Officer John Young said the disappointment of the World Cup miss was still raw, but insisted the financial foundations were strong. “The disappointment of the Men’s National Team not reaching the World Cup is still fresh in all our minds, but our financial results and strategic investments position us for long-term success in future tournaments,” he said.

The record turnover was driven by several factors including increased attendances at men’s and women’s home matches, Nations League prize money for the men’s team, the women’s national team qualifying for their first ever major international tournament in December 2024, and increased UEFA funding supporting the expansion of the Cymru Premier league. Funding from the Welsh Government to expand FAW headquarters and collaboration with the Department of Culture Media and Sport and the English Premier League to invest in community grassroots facilities also contributed.

The FAW’s gross profit reached £27.7m at a stable margin of 68%, with net assets of £11.8m backed by cash reserves of £16.1m. The net loss after tax came to £3.4m once investment returns and deferred tax movements were accounted for.

Young said the operating loss reflected a conscious strategic choice rather than financial strain. “The organisation recognises that operational losses are not viable over the long term but believes that, given the strength of our balance sheet, continued investment is justified to strengthen our domestic league, provide our national teams with the best possible opportunity for tournament qualification and success and to support the growth of the grassroots game,” he said.

The FAW’s confidence is underpinned by the financial security of hosting Euro 2028, which guarantees future income and — as a host nation — significantly increases Wales’s chances of qualifying for the tournament itself.

FAW CEO Noel Mooney pointed to the scale of the transformation in the organisation’s finances over the past five years. “We have more than doubled the revenues of FAW in just five years. Shortly, we will launch a new 10-year strategy to map out the path to sustainable success through to 2036,” he said.

Mooney said the investment in the domestic game was beginning to take shape. “For the first time, we have invested heavily in the domestic game to grow football here and, next season, as we move to 16 teams, will be very exciting,” he said. “Across Wales, we are investing in badly needed facilities, both at elite and grassroots level, to ensure we can grow the game for many years to come.”

Participation in Welsh football has grown from 90,000 to 120,000 players over the past four years, with the FAW now targeting 160,000 players alongside increased numbers of coaches, match officials and volunteers.

The FAW is currently consulting on a new ten-year strategy running to 2036, which will set out participation targets, investment plans and commercial ambitions for the next decade of Welsh football.

Related stories from Swansea Bay News

FAW to invest over £6m into JD Cymru Premier
The domestic league investment referenced in these accounts — and what it means for Welsh football.

Swansea local football gets £750,000 boost for new facilities
How FAW grassroots investment is landing in the Swansea Bay area.

Grassroots football in Wales set to trial summer pilot scheme after mass cancellations
The grassroots challenges the FAW is trying to address with its increased investment.

Welsh football clubs help tackle obesity
Football clubs across Wales playing a wider community role — part of the FAW’s participation push.

Welsh football clubs supported to reach mental health goals
Another strand of the FAW’s community investment strategy in action.

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Wales Women’s team bus involved in crash ahead of Euro 2025 match against France

The incident occurred this afternoon (Tuesday 8 July) as the team travelled to Arena St Gallen for their final training session. The Football Association of Wales (FAW) confirmed that all players and staff on board were unharmed, though an ambulance was called to attend to the driver of another vehicle.

Rhian Wilkinson, Wales head coach, said: “Everyone is ok. Our priority is to get them all together and away from the scene. We’ll be checking in to make sure they all continue to be ok.”

Wilkinson and team captain Angharad James were travelling separately in a media vehicle and arrived shortly after at the scheduled press conference. Training at the stadium was cancelled, though the squad may train later at their base in Weinfelden, around 30 minutes from St Gallen.

Rhian Wilkinson said: “This is really developing right now so we are trying to be as clear and transparent as possible. I think everyone, from all reports, is ok and we just need to get them all together and get everyone away from the scene to reassess. More importantly I think the driver of the other vehicle is ok as well. We will let everyone know once we know for sure.”

The FAW released a statement confirming that all passengers on both vehicles were unharmed and that the team had returned to their training base to continue preparations.

FAW statement: “The Football Association of Wales can confirm that the Cymru national team bus has been involved in a road traffic accident whilst travelling to Arena St Gallen for their matchday -1 training session ahead of Wednesday’s UEFA Women’s Euro 2025 match against France. All passengers on the Cymru national team bus and in the other vehicle are unharmed. The FAW’s priority has been to remove the players from the scene and return to the Cymru training base to complete their preparations for tomorrow’s match.”

Wales are making their debut at a major tournament and face a must-win match against France after a 3–0 defeat to the Netherlands in their opening Group D fixture.

#Euro2025 #football #FootballAssociationOfWales #Wales #WomenSFootball

English FA blocks EFL football club participation in Welsh League Cup

Cardiff City, Swansea City, Wrexham and Newport County had been working with the Football Association of Wales on plans to enter a revamped Welsh League Cup, with the winners qualifying for the Europa Conference League.

But after the English Football League and some of its other member clubs raised concerns, the FA board ruled against the plans following a meeting on Thursday.

A statement from the Football Association read:

“The FA board has considered a request made by four Welsh clubs to take part in a restructured version of the FAW League Cup which would provide an opportunity to qualify for UEFA competition.

“As part of the request, the Welsh clubs would forfeit their existing right to qualify for UEFA club competitions through the English system whilst they remained members of the EFL.

“The Welsh clubs would then seek to qualify for UEFA competition via the English system should they be promoted to the Premier League.

“As a result of the request, the FA undertook a thorough consultation with stakeholders and invited submissions from the Welsh clubs.

“Following careful consideration, taking into account various factors including equal opportunity for clubs to participate in the same competitions, for the same rewards on an equal basis; concerns raised by stakeholders regarding competition integrity, fixture congestion and player welfare, and the impact on the standing of existing competitions, the FA board has rejected the request.

“It was noted that it is open to the Welsh clubs to choose whether or not to participate in the English or Welsh system based on their own assessment of the relative merits of participation in each system, but if they choose to participate in the English system they must do so on the same basis as the English clubs which participate in that system.”

But the EFL, while not commenting publicly before Thursday’s decision, had expressed concerns about the plans over a number of reasons.

Fixture congestion was one because Championship games, for example, often take place in midweek at the same time as European games.

Money was a more significant consideration. With tight regulations over profit and sustainability rules, it was argued Wales’ clubs – with their greater chance of reaching Europe – would have an unfair advantage.

The FAW had said clubs would not include the revenues in their PSR accounting, but they would still benefit from extra ticket sales and possible bigger commercial and sponsorship deals – or even being more attractive to potential signings.

In response, the FAW said:

“The FAW is disappointed that the proposal was rejected as it would have benefited all levels of football throughout Wales with funding worth an annual £3million.

“The revenue model would have been distributed throughout the Cymru Premier, Adran Premier [women’s top flight] and grassroots facilities across the country.

“The FAW will continue to focus on raising standards across the game in Wales and implementing its ambitious strategy to improve the Cymru Premier both on and off the pitch through an exciting competition format, strengthening the league administration, professionalisng club administration, building brand awareness, engaging communities and enhancing on-pitch quality.”

#CardiffCityFC #football #FootballAssociationOfWales #SwanseaCityFC

The #FootballAssociationOfWales has become the first national association to join #CommonGoal, committing at least 1% of ticket sales from #WorldCup qualifiers to community and environmental projects across the country.
https://www.theguardian.com/football/article/2024/jul/17/fa-of-wales-common-goal

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