THE last day a football expo will be "Wrexham Day" as it pays tribute to the spiritual home of Welsh football where the FAW was founded in 1876.
As Wales prepare for the Euros this summer, fans can celebrate their passion for the game at Expo’r Wal Goch - Expo of The Red Wall.
It is a four day online festival offering a stage to explore Welsh football’s social, cultural and political impact.
Through a series of talks and panel discussions it will bring people together to share experience and build networks.
Russell Todd from the Expo says, “The experience of the pandemic has reminded us that football without fans is nothing, not just in the ground but in the pub before and after the match, on the trains and buses, the fanzines, music and good times.”
He added, “We may not all be allowed back into the grounds just yet, but the Expo will remind us of what we have been missing as we look forward to the Euros and a new season of football.”
The Expo kicks off with a lecture from Prof. Martin Johnes from Swansea University who asks ‘What can football tell us about Wales and Welsh history?’ For nations without a state, ethnic basis or even linguistic unity, our national football team takes on added significance. Then Dr Penny Miles explores the female fan experiences of the (men’s) Red Wall, home and away. She will delve into the good, the bad and the ugly of those experiences.
Tim Hartley and Russell Todd.
On the final day, Russell Todd interviews Spencer Vignes about the life of Leigh Richmond Roose.
Hailing from Holt, near Wrexham, Roose was one of Welsh and British football’s first superstars.
Then there will be a preview poems from the children’s ‘Euro 2021’ poetry competition run by the Football Association and Literature Wales. The session will include a performance by Wrexham-based poet Evrah Rose.
The Expo’s closing session will be all about preserving the nation's football heritage.
Nick Jones will provide an update on the National Football Museum in Wrexham and Fran Stovold from Sporting Heritage will explain how the Welsh football community can help shape a strategy for Wales' sporting heritage.
For more than a decade we have seen an explosion of spontaneous and fun Welsh culture born out of football, one which we can call our own.
The Expo’s ‘Read all about it’ session looks at alternative kinds of football writing from the well-established fanzines, ‘Dial M for Merthyr’ and ‘Welsh Football Magazine,’ to the new kids on the block - Wrexham’s ‘SHAG’ and ‘Alternative Wales.’
Andy Walsh from the Football Supporters Association will offer advice on how you might go about trying to own your club and looks at the Welsh examples of Bangor 1876 FC, Merthyr Town FC and Newport County.
The book ‘90 Minutes of Freedom’ by Jamie Grundy tells the story of HMP Prescoed FC, the only prisoner football team in Wales. It shows how football is used as a tool to engage with serving prisoners to help reduce re-offending. Jamie will tell the Expo what lessons this approach could have for football and sport more widely in society.
In 'Supporting communities through a pandemic,’ the FAW and FAW Trust will tell fans how Welsh football clubs have played a key role in supporting their local communities over the past 12 months. It will look at the experience of clubs from Tiers 1 and 2 down through to grassroots clubs.
Expo’r Wal Goch is on Twitter @ExpoWalGoch and on Facebook www.facebook.com/ExpoWalGoch
Register for the Expo at https://bit.ly/3eIdYnZ
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here