Noel Mooney the CEO appointed at the Football Association Of Wales (FAW) has been in the news on a few occasions since he started work in Wales. Some news connections have been left field, with a few odd ideas since his appointment in August 2021.

Recently he revealed that Cardiff City could receive a stadium expansion to 45,000 seats at the behest of the FAW. Correctly stating that the Cardiff City stadium has been an asset for big games he felt an expansion would make it more of a stronghold. Talks with the third tier club have been ongoing but it seems that Cardiff City would have to be a Premier League club for these plans to go ahead. That’s according to Mooney. The funding would come from the FAW plus suggested lottery funding. The Senedd (Devolved Government Of Wales) would also be involved.

The misery of Thursday nights exit from then World Cup Play Offs has done much to dampen the spirits of supporters and the FAW but they press on with a friendly fixture against Northern Ireland in Cardiff this Tuesday (7:45pm) This game isn’t a gauge on the stadiums attendance for friendlies really, the fixture should have been Wales v Italy but of course it’s now more of a losers friendly. Tickets sold out with that expectation and there was a clear no refund policy should Wales not make the play off final.

Thousands of match tickets are in circulation online to buy. The Northern Irish FA have stated below that tickets can be refunded. An opportunity for a FAW u-turn ?

Both Swansea City and Wrexham shrugged their shoulders on the stadium expansion in Cardiff. Wrexham already have visions to initially increase their capacity to 18,000 and the Swans have been in discussions with the council on a number of matters which we are working on to disclose when the time is appropriate. Noel Mooney has to be careful as the FAW have turned their backs on the Swans and Wrexham in recent times. No matter what he says. The last Wales game at the swansea.com was against Canada in September last year. Canada won 1-0 watched by over 15,000 fans. With Swansea rarely getting any Wales fixtures, the last one before that being in November 2020 against the USA, another friendly. Wrexham have hosted Wales twice in the past seven years or so. One was a 4-0 win for Wales against Gibraltar, the other a 1-0 win against Trinidad & Tobago. You see dishing out these type fixtures in the main do not excite people. Put these types of matches on in Cardiff and minimal attendances would be recorded.

As an aside we can expect a few friendlies being played at the Principality Stadium in Cardiff during the run up to Wales co-hosting the 2028 Euro finals with England, Ireland and Scotland. All hosts have to qualify on this occasion. So, Wales if they want to kick off the tournament on the 9th June 2028 in the Principality Stadium they will have to qualify first to do so. Something they failed to do for Euro 2024 being knocked out of the qualifier play offs by Poland in Cardiff on penalties. Yes, that all sounds a bit coincidental.

Mooney’s involvement with Cardiff City in these stadium expansion talks are not a surprise. He also backed Swansea City when they were being recklessly guided by Andrew Coleman and Ken Gude eighteen months or so ago to play in a Welsh League Cup. All parties leaving with bloody noses after the English Football League stated, off you go then - but you’re not going to have it both ways. That’s the perilous danger that some people who have no clue about football can put your club in.

Mooney comes from a commercial background after retiring from Irish league football as a goalkeeper. He sees opportunity, but that’s the risk with opportunities that can affect the long term future of a nations football or club history. When they do go wrong those that have implemented the ideas are long gone and down the road ! Making ‘good for today’ decisions that have no bearing on long term success, it’s purely a game of chance.

You will have your own view,

It could save your life.

Photograph MEGW