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Welsh League Cup plans rejected by FA

Friday, 24 January 2025 at 16:24

By Gareth Joy X @lookoutwales2

FAW

The Football Association in England has rejected controversial plans for a new Welsh League Cup involving EFL clubs.

The FAW had been hoping to revamp the competition to include Cardiff City, Swansea City, Wrexham and Newport County as part of its wider Proseict Cymru proposals.

The winners of the competition - which would have included the 12 Cymru Premier teams - would have earned a place in the qualifying rounds of the UEFA Europa Conference League.

But the plans needed approval from the FA board, who heard concerns from both the EFL and some of its other member clubs at a meeting on Thursday.

Although the FAW claimed the competition had "full backing", concerns were raised by Barry Town United and Caernarfon Town that the Welsh governing body had not shared full details about its plans.

Last week, a spokesperson at Jenner Park said the club would not offer its "unequivocal support" to the competition without consulting their fans first.

Following Thursday's meeting, an FA spokesperson said: "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."

The FAW responded by saying it was "disappointed" to see the proposals rejected "as it would have benefited all levels of football throughout Wales with funding worth an annual £3 million."

A spokesperson added: "The revenue model would have been distributed throughout the JD Cymru Premier, Genero Adran Premier 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 JD Cymru Premier both on and off the pitch through an exciting competition format, strengthening the league administration, professionalising club administration, building brand awareness, engaging communities and enhancing on-pitch quality."

The Cymru Premier is expected to expand from 12 to 16 teams and move the majority of its fixtures to Friday night from the 2026-27 season, under plans first announced by the FAW last September.

Currently, the Welsh League Cup involves all 44 teams from the Cymru Premier, the Cymru North and the Cymru South - along with a number of wildcard entries, which this season, have included the U21 teams from Cardiff City, Swansea City and Newport County, along with Merthyr Tydfil.

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