Knockout Wales continues to punch above its weight in hosting major events
WALES has been dubbed the number one nation on earth for punching above its weight in hosting major sporting events following the phenomenal success of the Champions League final.
Saturday’s Real Madrid versus Juventus showpiece was described as a perfect 10 out of 10 occasion by First Minister Carwyn Jones.
“Small nation, small city, big welcome,” he declared, as fans of the two football giants and Uefa powerbrokers left Cardiff on Saturday night and Sunday morning bowled over by the incredible experience they had just witnessed.
Gareth Bale’s Real Madrid lifted the trophy, courtesy of two goals by superstar Cristiano Ronaldo in their 4-1 triumph, but the other real winners on the night were Cardiff and Wales.
Months and months of planning and preparation came to fruition to such an extent that asked to give Wales a mark out of 10 for how it handled the final, the First Minister responded unhesitatingly: “Ten. You wouldn’t expect anything else, would you?
“Everything went exactly as it should have done. Despite painstaking planning, there are some things you can never bargain for.
“Will the fans behave? Well yes, they were great. Will the transport network be good? Again, that went well.
“People visiting our country for first time left with an extremely favourable impression. The feedback I was getting was a very positive one from just about everybody.”
He continued: “Sometimes we have to pinch ourselves at getting these events. The Ryder Cup, the Champions League. Very few countries of our size can host an event of such magnitude.
“For our size, we are the premier sporting nation in the world when it comes to hosting events. I almost get tired of saying this, given we have put on so many big occasions down the years, but it’s true.
“When the Millennium Stadium, as it was known back then, was built in 1999 some people were saying what waste of money, it’s a white elephant, what’s the point? Well I think it’s fair to say the stadium has more than paid its way.
“Look, if I had said to you 20 years ago we would be hosting the Champions League final in Cardiff, you would have laughed.
“But host it we did. And I have to pay tribute to everybody involved. The FA of Wales, the city council, lots of others too. In South Wales Police we have a body accustomed to dealing with major sporting events and, of course, something of the size of the Nato summit. They did a superb job.
“We’ve got the stadium and the Government here to drive it, and that last bit is key. The FAW are to be commended for having the ambition of wanting to bring the game here, but needed a Government prepared to make it come to fruition. These things each have come together to make the success of Saturday night possible.”
The last time Real Madrid were in town they beat Sevilla at Cardiff City Stadium to lift the European Super Cup.
It was that evening that Mr Jones knew the Champions League final would also be coming to Wales, too.
Revealing a conversation he had with former Uefa boss and French football great Michel Platini, the First Minister said: “We had also pitched to be one of the host nations for Euro 2020 and were disappointed not to get that.
“I was chatting that night to Platini and he promised we would get the Champions League final instead.
“In fact, his exact phrase, which I remember to this day, was ‘I will deliver this beautiful thing’. And deliver it he did.”
Every top football official in European football descended upon Wales for the most-watched sporting match on earth and football bosses, Welsh politicians and administrators knew they couldn’t afford any slip-ups.
Mr Jones continued: “I remember another conversation I had with Michel Platini when we first came to an agreement that the final would indeed come here. Lots of people were being critical, a small city, small nation, would we cope?
“Well Wales delivered – and we delivered very, very well, The feedback has been hugely positive.
“I was at a dinner with Uefa officials on Friday night and they were bowled over at being inside Cardiff Castle. My speech to them was ‘Small nation, small city, big welcome’ and I think that sums it up.
“They saw that for themselves,
though. They were remarking on how friendly the police were, how helpful the security personnel were. You don’t always get that in other cities.
“They loved the stadium, its city centre location, the city itself and the Welsh hospitality. We definitely proved the doubters wrong.”
Accepting there were massive logistical challenges to overcome, with fans having to come in from London and Birmingham because of lack of hotel space in south Wales, the First Minister said: “These things take a lot of organising, months and months of planning and preparation in advance.
“We knew we needed to sort out accommodation, transport and flights outside of Cardiff. That presented a challenge.
“It made it even more important to ensure the trains ran properly. Remember, at the final in Milan last year some people were taking hours to get to the ground when they were staying just a few miles away from the San Siro.
“Time is the key thing here, not distance. It’s two hours from Paddington to Cardiff Central, once here you’re pretty much straight into the stadium, unlike in other cities where grounds can be miles away. That’s not a bad time scale, you know.
“Generally we’ve had good feedback from Uefa officials and supporters about everything. We have proved again we deserve to hold world class sporting events here. The atmosphere was truly fantastic. Okay, it went a bit flat in the last 15 minutes at the Juventus end because of what was happening on the pitch.
“But the sheer cacophony of noise with the roof on made it one of those events where they say your ears are ringing afterwards. Phenomenal.
“I’ve seen it before with the ground, of course, but lots of Italian and Spanish fans hadn’t, even though they are used to tremendous atmospheres at Real Madrid and Juventus games.”
He concluded: “Lots of people who had never been to Cardiff before went away saying ‘This is great. Fantastic setting, superb arrangements.
“We expected 170,000 people in the city, fans coming in to enjoy the atmosphere in pubs and bars. It passed off largely without incident. We had two sets of fans passionate about their teams, of course, but who wanted to mix afterwards to enjoy the occasion.”