Noel Mooney: World Cup 2026 could earn Welsh grassroots at least £10m

Improving grassroots football in Wales has been a priority for the FAW in recent years, with Mooney previously describing the country’s public facilities as “Third World”.

Through its charitable arm, the Cymru Football Foundation, which was launched in October 2022, the FAW has spent £26m on projects around Wales, but Mooney believes that is only “scratching the surface”.

“The last time [Wales qualified in 2022] was great for Welsh football,” he added.

“We took €4m (£3.5m) that we made from the World Cup and our reserves and we put it into the Cymru Football Foundation which many clubs – 200 across Wales – have benefited already from, building pitches and dressing rooms and so on.

“So the last World Cup was a catalyst to what ended up being £26m that we’ve ended up distributing with help from DCMS [Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport], Welsh Government and local authorities and the clubs themselves.

“Now it’s clear, as we’ve discussed in a 10-year plan we’re working on, facilities at grassroots level remains a huge issue for Wales. It’s one that we have obviously shown we’re determined to tackle.

“We’re about to give out another tranche of a few million pounds very soon but it’s a long way to go. We’re still scratching the surface of that.”