The Football Association of Wales have launched a number of provisions and developments at Cymru National Team matches since the 2022 Level Playing Field Annual Fan Survey and have now turned attention to this year’s results.
A record number of supporters took part in the charity’s third annual survey, with data from across the 1791 total responses displayed in the results.
The full results report is now available to view, here.
Football Association of Wales senior equality, diversity, inclusion and integrity manager, Jason Webber, said: “The Football Association of Wales are proud to work closely with Level Playing Field.
“The charity’s latest survey highlights the ongoing barriers and challenges that Disabled People face as spectators in football.
“Working alongside Cardiff City FC, the FAW are proud to have launched several provisions and developments over the past year at Cymru National Team matches to improve the experiences of disabled supporters and will continue to work closely with Clubs to address the findings of the survey to create a more inclusive and accessible environment for everyone.”
Two of the key issues raised in the 2023 results were year-on-year increases of ‘inaccessible public transport’ as a barrier to attending live sport and the impact of ‘accessible travel & parking’ on the cost of attending. This comes as the young fans pictured travelled to watch the Cymru National Team in Wrexham on a bus part funded by the players.
Level Playing Field chief executive, Owain Davies, said: “We are very pleased by the enthusiasm with which the Football Association of Wales have received these results.
“This year, they made some important strides around Cymru National Team matches, invited us to deliver disability and inclusion training for their staff, and had a number of clubs engage with Unite For Access for the first time.
“There is a recognition of the work which still need to be done and an eagerness to make vital improvements to the experiences of disabled fans.”
An online forum will be held on Thursday 2 November, which will include a further briefing on the results and the opportunity for fans to feedback and discuss what the data suggests.
The Zoom call will begin at 5:30pm and is open to both disabled and nondisabled fans. Please register here, by midnight on Wednesday 1 November.