It’s been a year of stand-out campaigns, top events and major milestones in the world of Welsh sport.
As the final whistle blows on 2025, let’s have a peek at just some of the highlights that have shaped Welsh sport.
It’s time to hit replay….
A year in Welsh sport – 2025 replayed
The Welsh sport campaigns that made an impact in 2025
In 2025, Welsh sport was jam-packed with campaigns and initiatives that made a difference. And while there are many highlights to choose from, here are three to inspire you in 2026…
Basketball Wales launches Red Whistle campaign to encourage refereeing
In April, Basketball Wales bounced in with its brilliant Red Whistle campaign. It’s pretty simple: all young and new refs wear a red whistle and lanyard which is a signal to players, coaches and spectators that the official is young or new to refereeing. Think of it as an L plate on a basketball court.
It encourages more referees to step up by:
- reducing pressure
- allowing them to learn from mistakes
- develop confidence
Already, figures show an increase in candidates applying for level one referee courses this year while no safeguarding concerns or reports have been made about new or under 18 referees feeling intimidated.
Gavin Williams, CEO of Basketball Wales said:
"Our Red Whistle campaign has already made a positive impact this season, with noticeable improvements in behaviour towards our referees from parents, coaches and spectators. We are grateful to everyone who has supported the campaign so far and engaged with it in such a positive way.”
Badminton Wales challenges perceptions of disability
As the biggest para badminton event ever hosted in Wales descended on Cardiff, Badminton Wales seized the opportunity to challenge common preconceptions about disability.
In the hard-hitting ‘Can you manage?’ video, para badminton athletes sparked important conversations. The video includes the powerful line:
“I’m not your underdog. I’m not your feel-good story. I’m not here to inspire you. I’m here to move. To compete, to win. If that makes you uncomfortable…good.”
Badminton Wales CEO Kelly Aston MBE said:
“We were incredibly proud to bring the British & Irish Para Badminton International to Cardiff. But the event was about so much more than world-class sport. It gave us the opportunity to challenge perceptions and encourage conversations around inclusion and representation in sports.”
It is a great example of how sport can influence attitudes and behaviour. Let’s see more of this in 2026.
Welsh Athletics raises awareness of female safety
With many women choosing not to run over winter because of darker nights, Welsh Athletics has led the charge to help make it safer.
The ‘Own the Night’ campaign was perfectly timed, hitting the headlines as the clocks went back in October.
The initiative not only raises awareness of the issues that women face when running at night, but it aims to educate communities on practical ways to provide support. It also invited groups and clubs to ‘Reclaim the Streets’, encouraging them to organise collective run sessions.
- 2127 people got involved in Own The Night’s run across Wales on 26 October in events organised by 60 clubs and groups as well as 3 events staged by Welsh Athletics
- 223 people have taken part in educational webinars
- 17 Senedd members have officially supported the campaign following an event in the Senedd.
- All 4 police forces in Wales have thrown their weight behind the campaign with 12 clubs signing up to police initiatives
- It has led to clubs such as Fordy Runs Wrexham Satellite Club in Wrexham, working with police to set up group running sessions after dark
- Newport Council is now looking at how street lighting can make it safer for runners
And this campaign continues to make an impact with more partnerships, more group sessions and more women who are now finding it safer to run.
Here’s to more great ideas and positive impact in Welsh sport next year.
The history-making sports events staged in Wales in 2025
Welsh sport’s enjoyed a busy calendar of first-class sports events with the nation playing host to history-making, sporting moments.
2025 was a year of firsts, extraordinary memories and unforgettable achievements. And here are just a few of them…
The best golfers arrived in Wales for the AIG Women’s Open
In what was a bumper year of women’s sport, the world’s best female golfers teed off at Royal Porthcawl for the AIG Women’s Open. And it entered the history books as the largest women’s sporting event ever to take place in Wales.
A bumper crowd of 47,428 watched Japan’s Miyu Yamashita lift the trophy. She wasn’t the only winner though…
- 74 projects across Wales are transforming facilities for women and girls thanks to a £1 million Legacy Fund from the Welsh Government, through Sport Wales.
- More women and girls than ever before from diverse communities have been introduced to the sport through Wales Golf's New2Golf scheme, offering a low-cost introduction to golf at local facilities.
- Give Golf a Go, Wales Golf’s brand new campaign launched this year in collaboration with Glamorgan Cricket, WRU and Wales Netball/Celtic Dragons, which has seen a whole range of people try golf for the first time!
- And Llantrisant and Pontyclun Golf Club won Junior Club of the Year at the Wales Golf Awards. They also showed just how elite sports events make an impact on grassroots sport, inspiring more children onto the fairway. Junior membership has increased by 50% while the number of girls playing has more than trebled. The club’s juniors even got to play a starring role in the event, forming the first ever guard of honour in the championship's history for the trophy presentation.
Photography: The R&A
Wales’ first-ever wheelchair squash tournament
Wales has a strong track record when it comes to disability sport. And it pushed boundaries once again in 2025.
In September, for the first time ever, a Welsh Wheelchair Squash tournament took place, marking a huge milestone in the development of the sport in Wales.
A date in the diary is already set for a repeat event next year but expect it to be bigger and better because the tournament has already served up long-lasting impact, resulting in:
- a new network of wheelchair squash ambassadors
- monthly taster sessions in Cardiff
- Squash Wales and Tennis Wales now working together on a six-week set of taster sessions.
Wrexham tennis event provides economic boost
Welsh teenage tennis ace Mimi Xu thrilled a home crowd when she won both the singles and doubles titles at the Lexus Wrexham Open.
And she did so in front of an army of local schoolchildren who were trained to take on the very important role of ball crew. And as a thank you for their hard work, Tennis Wales gave them a padel taster session.
Before the tournament got underway, local children also had the chance to play on the very same courts graced by the professionals. They were also given tickets to watch the quarter finals and had the opportunity to ask Mimi XU their burning questions.
The event – the biggest indoor women’s tennis event in the UK - delivered £500,000 benefits to the business community, according to Sport England research. It also scored the highest spectator attendance of all indoor W100 events in 2025.
And the great news? It’s happening all over again in 2026. We’ll see you in Wrexham!
Photography: James Baylis
The major milestones achieved in Welsh sport in 2025
2025 was a landmark year for Welsh sport. The women’s football team made their Euros debut and it was announced that the Tour de France would pass through Wales in 2027.
But Wales also achieved significant triumphs behind the scenes…
Welsh sport passes £1million Crowdfunder mark
In September, clubs across Wales – with the help of Sport Wales and Crowdfunder – smashed the £1million investment milestone.
Since 2021:
- 76 clubs across Wales have raised £730,795 through Crowdfunder.
- Sport Wales has provided £367,210 in match-funding through the A Place for Sport fund
- a grand total of £1,098,005 has been invested into community sports facilities
- a third of the projects have benefited the most deprived areas of Wales.
From disabled access ramps and new changing rooms to extending clubhouses and replacing leaky roofs, Sport Wales and Crowdfunder are here to help.
Want your club to be a part of the next £1million raised for grassroots sport in Wales? Start your crowdfunding journey now.
The Foundations Framework launched
This year, the Welsh sports sector came together to create Foundations Framework Wales.
It is a good practice guide for anyone who delivers sport for children aged 3 - 11.
In Wales, we want children to have a positive experience of sport so they can grow up with the motivation, the confidence and the skills to enjoy a lifetime of being active. Put simply, it’s about giving children the best start possible.
The real hard work started in November as the sector shared the framework with sports clubs across Wales. The aim is to help them to use the tool so that we can all deliver child-centred sport.
But why is it important? Well…
- just 22% of 8 -11-year-olds currently meet physical activity guidelines
- 1 in 4 children aged 4–5 (27.1%) in Wales are obese or overweight
- 1 in 3 pupils (31%) in Wales are not confident to try new sports
“The dream is to start to shift the dial on the numbers of children dropping out of sport because of low confidence or negative experiences.”
Wales’ five Regional Sports Partnerships set up
In a game-changing transformation of the Welsh sporting landscape, the five regional sports partnerships have now been set up.
It is one of the biggest changes ever seen in how sport in Wales is delivered, led and funded. Making decisions at a regional level is set to help address inequalities in sports participation and foster collaboration and innovative thinking across the region.
The partnerships cover North Wales, Mid Wales, West Wales, Central South and Gwent.
Of course, 2025 saw many other highlights with organisations and clubs celebrating their own successes. Here’s to more big moments, milestones, and impact in Welsh sport next year.