We could have done without a summer of Eurotrash

There’s this mentality among certain groups involved in Welsh football that everything we do is a positive.

Take the Cymru women’s team for example.

First-ever qualification for a major tournament, Euro 2025, a huge positive.

However, when we took on elite teams in our group in Switzerland, we were out of our depth and not far short of embarrassing.

Certainly, the 6-1 caning at the hands of England was a very painful experience.

Rather than take it on the chin as a learning curve, though, there was this cringey celebration of the fact we actually scored a goal against the English.

We’d run England much closer in previous years, even getting a 0-0 draw in a World Cup qualifier in 2018, but because we bagged a consolation goal in the Euros when the game was long lost there was a euphoria more in keeping with a carnival.

Yes, no-one could take away the commendable first-time achievement of reaching the group stage of a major tournament, but what happened there was not good at all.

Always looking for the positive is a good trait, but not to the point where it becomes delusional.

It was similar to the men’s 2022 Fifa World Cup in Qatar. Our first appearance in the finals since 1958, but again we were less than impressive. Bottom of our group and arguably one of the poorest teams on show in the tournament.

Perhaps we were spoiled at Euro 2016, when our lads reached the semi-finals and created some of the best memories in Welsh football history.

Maybe we expected too much six years on, with many of the 2016 squad either not present or past their best. And no Chris Coleman. However, we had a right to expect better and certainly not to hide behind the ‘oh well, at least we got there’ shield.

Some great things are happening in Welsh football, especially on the development side, and under Craig Bellamy, the men’s team are showing a lot of promise. A very positive start under the new manager.

But being overly-positive is not a good look, sets you up for ridicule.

OUR CLUBS IN EUROPE

Which brings us on to the woeful efforts of our Cymru Premier League clubs in Europe this summer.

It’s a downright disaster! In 2024-25 our Uefa coefficient placed us 49th out of 55 – now we languish in 53rd out of 55! At least we’re above Gibraltar and San Marino though….for now!

Uefa Champions League 2025-26
Our full-timers The New Saints beaten 2-1 on aggregate in the first qualifying round by KF Shkëndija from the mighty North Macedonia.

Uefa Conference League 2025-26
The New Saints, allowed another go at European success, directly entered the third-tier competition this time and lost 2-0 on aggregate to Luxembourg’s Differdange 03.
Last season, TNS made history by reaching the League phase of this competition and winning one of their six games, against Astana of Kazakhstan, to finish 32nd out of 36 in the final standings.
Hardly worthy of a national celebration, nor the media over-euphoric reaction it created, but still further than the Cymru Premier had gone before and a boost to our coefficient.

Uefa Conference League 2025-26
Haverfordwest County – beaten 5-3 on aggregate by Floriana of Malta in the first qualifying round.

Uefa Conference League 2025-26
Penybont – knocked out in first qualifying round 4-1 on aggregate by FK Kauno Zalgiris of Lithuania.

In short, a massive disappointment. Losses across the board.

Last season it was so different. There was TNS’ success in the Uefa Conference League, where first-timers Caernarfon Town and Welsh Cup winners Connah’s Quay Nomads also picked up wins (Caernarfon won one tie, Nomads one game but were defeated narrowly overall).

The mood was high and the coefficient rose.

This season, however….total misery.

I have not seen the fallout yet from the FAW or media, but surely it has to be called what it is – a major setback for Welsh football which has taken us back to much darker days, hopefully temporarily.

These countries we have lost out to are not footballing giants – we should be good enough to beat them.

So what will it be? ‘Well, we came close’, ‘At least we competed’……

The stats say it all – Welsh clubs have had their worst European campaign in more than 10 years.

The coefficient drop also means the first season of expanded, relaunched Cymru Premier in 2026/27 will only have three European spots on offer.

How do we improve it? We’re never going to get Cardiff City, Swansea City, Wrexham or Newport County into the Cymru Premier to be eligible to represent Wales in Europe, so if things are to get better, it’s down to those we’ve got vying for qualification from our national league.

What do we do? well it might be an idea to face reality, look at that coefficient and realise we are not good enough. Admit we have a problem.

In other words, not to just be happy with competing, like many associated with our men’s or women’s national sides seem to be, but to look to get stronger.

It’s a tough task for sure. There is no miracle solution.