World Cup 2022: How Qualification Could Transform Welsh Football on and off the Field

The edge of the past. It's felt like familiar territory for Wales recently.

It came Euro 2016, ending their waiting of 58 years for an important event, and enjoying the new heights towards a first semi-final. Then they followed up by qualifying for their next European Championship.

This Sunday Wales will play in the final of their play-off against Ukraine offers them the chance to end another drought, which is a complete absent in World Cups which stretches back to 1958.

The mistakes that have transpired in the intervening years are inscribed into the Welsh football mental psyche. Breaking the cycle would be the most satisfying way to let go.

This is all that's needed. The trickier part is understanding what it means to qualify for an World Cup would mean in practical terms - both on both the pitch in terms of culture, finances, and politics.

Even in their most successful time, for Wales this could be a transformative time for Wales.

"For everybody in Wales it's massive," manager Robert Page.

"This is the biggest game in Welsh history since 1958. There's no hiding behind that and we're all excited by that."

'The Numbers are Astronomical'

For countries with larger populations for which World Cup qualification is routine The financial rewards could seem unimportant. However, for those who belong to the Football Association of Wales, they could have a dramatic impact on the game.

The qualification process to play in this World Cup would earn the FAW at the very least PS8m which is about half of its annual revenue in normal years. If Wales would make it to a semi-final, the figure could increase to PS38m.

The financial accounts for the year that ended in July which included the first three months of coronavirus pandemic , saw the FAW suffer an after-tax loss of PS1.03m having earned profits of PS264,520 in the year before, and turnover falling down to PS14.57m after PS15.32m.

The next year will see a rise in popularity in attendance, with fans coming back for home games as well as prize money to help qualify for the postponed Euro 2020. However, even allowing for the additional revenue streams, having more PS8m to fund World Cup qualification would represent an impressive increase.

"I think the legacy, whether we qualify on the fifth of June or not - which of course we are desperate to qualify, make no mistake about that - regardless of that our national men's team have written their place in history," says FAW chief executive Noel Mooney.

"They've brought us through two big tournaments within just the last four months. We're at the brink of reaching the father or mother of all tournaments: for instance, the World Cup finals. Now this is a different kind of gravy.

"There are 211 nations who could participate in this game and it's a huge amount of people and the numbers are incredible.

"First foremost there's the practical aspect of making some cash. It's $10.5m [PS8m] to be had to teams that are qualified to participate in to play in the World Cup - that's great.

"On the top on that," we have sponsorships that start with some being at or around PS1m.

"There is an established common sense rule in Europe that a third of the money is spent on operations, while a third goes to players, and the remaining third would be put back into the development of soccer in Wales.

"So I believe you're talking about the north of PS3m that would be put into local facilities, and also to improve FAW's FAW as an organization.

"There is a briefcase sitting on the halfway line [on Sunday] worth somewhere like PS10m to the winners."

"Millions of miles from the place we must be with the grassroots'

It's one thing to have additional funds, but the decision of the best way to spend it is an entirely different issue.

The majority of the money earned to qualify to play in Euro 2016 was invested back into the elite team and, in particular the senior men's team.

This has resulted in qualifying as a team for Euro 2020 and the purchase of top-quality training facilities at FAW's head office within the Vale of Glamorgan.

The governing body eventually increased the amount it spends on youth and women's soccer also, and now the main focus is on the game for all communities.

"If we qualify for the World Cup, we will see another spurt of growth in football and Wales, and we need to be ready for that. We need grassroots facilities to do that," Mooney declares.

"That can be our Achilles' heel. We do not have the facilities for grassroots football. It is imperative that we make sure that boys and girls play football throughout Wales This is really a shame since it hinders the development of Wales.

"Now as a nation, we have to be confident in into the next decade. We must invest in tens, or even hundreds of millions of dollars across Wales on infrastructure. If we are able to do this then we'll become a more healthy, happier and happier country.

"So we at the FAW as well as our teams from the national team will play the right thing. I guarantee you that we'll be at major tournamentsand inspire people to take part in soccer and other sports No problem.

"We only need partners who will join us on this journey and help us create the pitches we'll need.

"We're thousands of millions of kilometers away from the place we're supposed to be.

"In August or September we'll announce a new fund for grassroots football that will allow all of our clubs - the 953 clubs across Wales - and other community groups to apply to improve their facilities. And it's just so important that the Welsh government and our local authorities are with us on that journey, and that we change Wales for the better."

"A chance to market Wales across the World'

When Cardiff was not able to host Euro 2020 matches in 2014 Then, FAW the chief executive Jonathan Ford bemoaned the "politics" behind Uefa's decision.

It was almost childish. When he spoke towards the Welsh delegation after leaving the convention center in Geneva it appeared to be a sense that they were being outplayed by the counterparts who came from Scotland in that of the Republic of Ireland.

In the future, the FAW is hoping to gain more influence in the corridors of power.

It is also helpful that the current chief executive Mooney has spent the last 10 years at Uefa and was the director of national associations' business development. He previously held positions in marketing following his move as a member of an organization called the Football Association of Ireland.

There's a lot to be done to ensure that Wales hopes to become more prominent in the game of Fifa or Uefa.

Laura McAllister is furthering that cause more than many and in the last election she was beaten narrowly in the race to be Uefa's woman-only representative to the Fifa Council.

Former Wales captain and professor of political science has held many top-ranking positions in the sport's administration and served as Uefa's deputy chair for the women's football committee since 2017.

"I'd like to see us become an exemplar of good governance, where we have independent voices who speak up for the strategy of developing the game, who speak up for the women's game and the grassroots game," McAllister declares.

"I'm doing my best to not minimize the Euros It's an incredible event, and to do effectively, it did propel Wales into the world stage. However, it's the World Cup is a level above and beyond.

"It's building on the momentum we've already built. We've been able to qualify for consecutive Euros We've been in the nth percentile numerous times to winning the World Cup] and a majority of us have been in those games where we've been close however I am convinced that this is the best chance we have in a very long period of time.

"It's not the same older Wales. In the event that we don't defeat Ukraine at home in an international game it's likely that we aren't worthy to be able to play in an World Cup. Let's be real, we're a superior team and if we perform as well as we can and do our best, we can win. That's the base for whatever else we'd like to achieve during the match.

"More politically, it also gives the government in Wales an opportunity to use the incredible power and reach of football and sport to sell Wales as a modern, technologically-advanced, inclusive nation. It's going to provide so many opportunities to sell Wales to the world."

The political, economic and cultural advantages of a World Cup qualification could be immense for Wales.

However, as McAllister warns that If Wales wants to present itself as a confident and resolute nation in the world The people who run the country and its sports body should have clear strategies in place.

"It's an opportunity but it's about making the most of that opportunity. We can't just stumble into it and expect the rewards and largesse to come," McAllister states.

"You've to develop an effective plan of action for sports diplomacy. That is ensuring that we are consistent in the way we speak about Wales.

"We're not a nation that always punches above its level on the sporting field We're a country that has always had a good time in terms of sports, but perhaps not quite realised this in political and economic terms.

"It will require a lot of work in a short period of time - and I'm not suggesting this is something that's not already under way - but if we qualify for Qatar on Sunday we've only got a period of months to get organised and set an ambitious target for what we want to get out of that for our nation, beyond football and beyond sport."