Women’s football in Wales reaches major milestone ahead of schedule

4th December 2025 Oliver Taliku

Women’s football in Wales has improved vastly over the past three years and they have reached a major milestone that was targeted for 2026.

There are now 20,000 registered girls and women footballers in Wales which is an increase in over 50% from 2021.

Successful ‘Our Wales’ strategy

The Welsh FA outlined a new project in 2021 called ‘Our Wales’ that intended to grow women’s football.

It is safe to say that the plan has been a resounding success, with the intended target of 20,000 registered women in football achieved just over a month ahead of schedule.

Participation from women in football has seen a massive boom in the past three years with an increase of 58% players.

Here is the breakdown for areas in Wales that have seen a surge in football interest:

  • U14s–U17s: Increase from 2,332 to 4,279 – an 83% rise
  • U6–U13s: Increase from 8,379 to 12,528 – a 49% rise
  • Adult football: Increase from 2,016 to 3,237 – a 61% rise

FA Wales also gave a breakdown of areas in the country that saw an increase of popularity, with South Wales seeing the biggest change.

  • South Wales FA – 73%
  • Gwent County FA – 67%
  • North Wales Coast FA – 49%
  • West Wales FA – 43%
  • North East Wales FA – 42%
  • Central Wales FA – 17%

A great year for Wales international football

A large reason that women’s football in Wales has seen a huge boom in popularity is down to the international team.

Wales competed in their first-ever international tournament this year.

The team ranked 32nd in the world played at Euro 2025 and although they lost every game, the landmark occasion marked huge progress in the game.

Ahead of the tournament, Wales women’s technical director admitted that his nation was playing ‘catch-up’ with other countries on the international stage.

Competing in the Euros was a huge step forward for Wales but there is still a long way to go before they can be competitive with some of the bigger nations.

World Cup 2027 qualifying begins in 2026 and Wales have a favourable group which could see them qualify for their first-ever World Cup.

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About Oliver Taliku 423 Articles
Olly Taliku has worked with highly respected sports and gambling websites where he has produced hundreds of articles, as well as being published with Burton Albion and Chesterfield FC. At Burton Olly worked closely alongside the women's team, producing mainly matchday content including reports and interviews. He also has experience as an accredited Premier League and EFL writer for Prost International where he worked during the 2021/22 season to produce matchday content as an on location reporter. Olly specialises in women's football as well as long form SEO content plus news and tips. While he enjoys writing about all football, Olly supports Arsenal passionately as a lifelong fan of the club.

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