List of Cymru Premier clubs
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Cymru Premier is an association football league based in Wales. Formed in 1992 as the League of Wales, it was the first national football league in the country.[1] The competition changed its name to the Welsh Premier League in 2002 and then to the Cymru Premier in 2019. In its inaugural season 20 teams played in the league, but it has been restructured since and has 12 member clubs in the 2024–25 season. Although it is the highest level of the Welsh football league system, the Welsh Premier League does not include the country's four largest professional clubs, Cardiff City, Swansea City, Wrexham and Newport County; for historical reasons these clubs all play within the English league system.[2] As of 2024, The New Saints, who have played in Oswestry in England since 2005,[3] are the only full-time professional team in the league.[4] Many of the clubs that have played in the league were founded in the 19th century and spent a century or more playing in regional leagues before the creation of the League of Wales in 1992.
Since its formation, 42 clubs have taken part in the league. The only clubs to have played in the league in every season since it was formed are Aberystwyth Town and Newtown. Conversely two other founder members, Abergavenny Thursdays and Llanidloes Town, were relegated at the end of the league's inaugural season and have never returned. Two other clubs, Llangefni Town and Cardiff Grange Harlequins, have spent only a single season in the league. The most recent team to make its debut in the league was Colwyn Bay, who gained promotion to the league for the first time in 2023. A system of promotion and relegation exists between the Cymru Premier and the two regional leagues at the second level of the Welsh league system, the Cymru North in the northern half of the country and the Cymru South in the southern half.[5]
Clubs
The table shows the first and most recent season in which each club competed in the league up to and including the 2023–24 season. Some clubs' membership was intermittent between their first and last season. The name shown for each club is the most recent, and the table is initially sorted in alphabetical order of these names. Any other names under which the club played in the league are shown in footnotes. A dagger symbol (†) indicates that the club was a founder member of the league.
| Club | Founded | First season | Most recent season | Total seasons | Best finish | Times champions | 2023–24 status | Ref(s). |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Abergavenny Thursdays † | 1927 | 1992–93 | 1992–93 | 1 | 20th | – | Defunct; folded in 2013 | [6][7] |
| Aberystwyth Town † | 1884 | 1992–93 | 2023–24 | 32 | 4th | – | Playing in Cymru Premier | [8] |
| Afan Lido † | 1967 | 1992–93 | 2013–14 | 14 | 2nd | – | Playing in Cymru South | [9] |
| Airbus UK Broughton[nb1] | 1946 | 2004–05 | 2022–23 | 15 | 2nd | – | Playing in Cymru North | [10][11] |
| Bala Town | 1880 | 2009–10 | 2023–24 | 15 | 2nd | – | Playing in Cymru Premier | [12] |
| Bangor City † | 1876 | 1992–93 | 2017–18 | 26 | 1st | 3 | Inactive | [13] |
| Barry Town United | 1912 | 1994–95 | 2023–24 | 15 | 1st | 7 | Playing in Cymru Premier | [14][15][16] |
| Briton Ferry Athletic † | 1925 | 1992–93 | 1996–97 | 4 | 17th | – | Merged with Llansawel in 2009 to form Briton Ferry Llansawel | [17] |
| Caernarfon Town | 1937 | 1995–96 | 2023–24 | 19 | 5th | – | Playing in Cymru Premier | [18] |
| Caersws † | 1887 | 1992–93 | 2009–10 | 18 | 4th | – | Playing in Cymru North | [19] |
| Cardiff Grange Harlequins | 1935 | 2005–06 | 2005–06 | 1 | 18th | – | Defunct; folded in 2015 | [20] |
| Cardiff Metropolitan University †[nb10] | 2000 | 1992–93 | 2023–24 | 17 | 2nd | – | Playing in Cymru Premier | [21][22][23][24][25] |
| Carmarthen Town | 1950 | 1996–97 | 2019–20 | 24 | 3rd | – | Playing in Cymru South | [26] |
| Cefn Druids[nb3] | 1872 | 1999–2000 | 2021–22 | 18 | 5th | – | Inactive | [27][28][29][30] |
| Cemaes Bay[nb2] | 1976 | 1995–96 | 1997–98 | 3 | 12th | – | Playing in North Wales Coast West Football League | [31][32] |
| Colwyn Bay | 1881 | 2023–24 | 2023–24 | 1 | – | – | Playing in Cymru Premier | [33] |
| Connah's Quay Nomads †[nb4] | 1946 | 1992–93 | 2023–24 | 30 | 1st | 1 | Playing in Cymru Premier | [34][35] |
| Conwy Borough † | 1977 | 1992–93 | 1999–2000 | 8 | 3rd | – | Playing in Ardal NW | [36] |
| Cwmbran Town † | 1951 | 1992–93 | 2006–07 | 15 | 1st | 1 | Playing in Gwent County League Premier Division | [37] |
| Ebbw Vale † | 1888 | 1992–93 | 1997–98 | 6 | 3rd | – | Defunct; folded in 1998 | [38] |
| Flint Town United † | 1886 | 1992–93 | 2022–23 | 8 | 4th | – | Playing in Cymru North | [39] |
| Haverfordwest County † | 1899 | 1992–93 | 2023–24 | 20 | 2nd | – | Playing in Cymru Premier | [40] |
| Holywell Town † | 1880 | 1992–93 | 1998–99 | 6 | 5th | – | Playing in Cymru North | [41] |
| Llandudno [nb5] | 1878 | 2015–16 | 2018–19 | 4 | 3rd | – | Playing in Cymru North | [42] |
| Llanelli Town † | 1896 | 1992–93 | 2018–19 | 18 | 1st | 1 | Playing in Cymru South | [43][44][45] |
| Llangefni Town | 1897 | 2007–08 | 2007–08 | 1 | 18th | – | Playing in Ardal NW | [46] |
| Llanidloes Town † | 1875 | 1992–93 | 1992–93 | 1 | 19th | – | Playing in Cymru North | [47] |
| Maesteg Park Athletic † | 1945 | 1992–93 | 1994–95 | 3 | 15th | – | Defunct; folded in 2010 | [48] |
| Mold Alexandra † | 1929 | 1992–93 | 1994–95 | 3 | 13th | – | Playing in Cymru North | [49] |
| Neath[nb6] | 1922 | 2007–08 | 2011–12 | 5 | 3rd | – | Defunct; folded in 2012 | [50][51][52] |
| The New Saints[nb9] | 1959 | 1993–94 | 2023–24 | 31 | 1st | 13 | Playing in Cymru Premier | [53][54][55] |
| Newtown † | 1875 | 1992–93 | 2023–24 | 32 | 2nd | – | Playing in Cymru Premier | [56] |
| Oswestry Town | 2003 | 2000–01 | 2002–03 | 3 | 15th | – | Merged with The New Saints in 2003 | [57] |
| Penybont | 2013 | 2019–20 | 2023–24 | 4 | 3rd | – | Playing in Cymru Premier | [58] |
| Pontypridd United | 1992 | 2022–23 | 2023–24 | 2 | 8th | – | Playing in Cymru Premier | [59] |
| Port Talbot Town[nb7] | 1901 | 2000–01 | 2015–16 | 16 | 3rd | – | Playing in Ardal SW | [60][61] |
| Porthmadog † | 1884 | 1992–93 | 2009–10 | 13 | 9th | – | Playing in Cymru North | [62] |
| Prestatyn Town | 1910 | 2008–09 | 2014–15 | 7 | 5th | – | Playing in Cymru North | [63] |
| Rhayader Town | 2007 | 1997–98 | 2001–02 | 5 | 12th | – | Playing in Central Wales Football League Southern Division | [64] |
| Rhyl | 1878 | 1994–95 | 2016–17 | 20 | 1st | 2 | Defunct; folded in 2020 | [65] |
| Welshpool Town[nb8] | 1877 | 1996–97 | 2009–10 | 10 | 4th | – | Playing in Ardal NE | [66][67] |
| Ton Pentre | 1896 | 1993–94 | 1996–97 | 4 | 3rd | – | Playing in South Wales Alliance League Premier Division | [68] |
Notes
- nb1 Known as Airbus UK until 2007[10][11]
- nb2 Known as Cemaes Ynys Mon from 1997 until 1998[31][32]
- nb3 Known as Flexsys Cefn Druids until 2003, NEWI Cefn Druids from 2003 until 2009, and Elements Cefn Druids from 2009 until 2010[27][28][29]
- nb4 Known as Gap Connah's Quay from 2008 to 2017[34][35]
- nb5 Known as MBi Llandudno from 2015 to 2016[42]
- nb6 Known as Neath Athletic until 2008[50][51][52]
- nb7 Known as Port Talbot Athletic until 2001[60][61]
- nb8 Known as Technogroup Welshpool between 2009 and 2011[66][67]
- nb9 Known as Llansantffraid until 1997 and Total Network Solutions from 1997 until 2006. Merged with fellow Welsh Premier League club Oswestry Town in 2003, continuing under the Total Network Solutions name.[53][54][55]
- nb10 Inter Cardiff played in the Welsh Premier League until 2000, but was known as Inter Cable Tel from 1996 until 1999. In 2000 the club merged with UWIC of the Welsh Football League to form UWIC Inter Cardiff and continued to play in the Welsh Premier League. The club adopted its current name in 2012.[21][22][23][24][25]