Wales Pushes for Expanded Women's Euros to Boost Fairness and Participation
The Football Association of Wales (FAW) is advocating for Uefa to expand the Women's European Championship from 16 to 24 teams, aligning it with the men's tournament structure. This initiative comes after Wales qualified for their inaugural major women's tournament at Euro 2025, where they exited at the group stage in Switzerland. FAW chief executive Noel Mooney emphasized their commitment, stating, "We're lobbying quite strongly with Uefa to try and move from a 16-team Euros to 24 teams like the men." He believes that increasing the number of teams would provide greater opportunities for countries like Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland, and the Republic of Ireland to participate in the Euros. The men's competition was expanded to 24 teams for Euro 2016, which allowed Wales to qualify for their first major tournament since the 1958 World Cup. They reached the semi-finals in France, marking the beginning of a successful era for Welsh football. Mooney pointed out that the Republic of Ireland missed out on Euro 2025 due to their loss to Wales, stating, "if that was a 24-team tournament they'd have been there and that would have been a huge lift for their country." Currently, Wales aims for qualification for the 2027 World Cup, having topped their qualifying group. However, navigating the complex qualification system makes the prospect of qualifying for Euro 2029 seem more attainable, especially with an expanded tournament. Mooney also highlighted the support from Uefa, mentioning influential figures such as Nadine Kessler and Laura McAllister, who can amplify their call for fairness in women's football. He concluded, "if you're doing it for the men you should do it for the women too."
Source: BBC Sport - 2026-06-11