The Welsh Ardal football league is a semi-professional football league in Wales, consisting of four regional divisions: Ardal North West, Ardal North East, and Ardal South West and Ardal South East. The league was formed in 2020 as part of a restructuring of the Welsh football pyramid and sits at tier 3 of the system. The goal of the restructuring was to create a more sustainable and competitive football structure in Wales.
The Welsh Ardal league is a significant step forward for Welsh football as it provides a platform for semi-professional footballers to play at a higher level and develop their skills, while also offering a pathway to professional football.
Although the league was formed in 2020, the first season was actually in 2021–22. Over the first couple of seasons, the league has generated significant interest and excitement among Welsh football fans. There has also been a strong interest in betting on the Ardal league with spectators and fans looking to back their hometown teams. Unfortunately, as the league is relatively new and doesn’t have the level of coverage of some of the bigger leagues in the UK, many punters struggle to find an online bookie that takes bets on the Ardal league.
However, there is one bookmaker that covers not only the Welsh Premier League and the Cymru North & South leagues but also the Ardal leagues. That bookmaker is Dragonbet.
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Dragonbet is a betting site that was launched in 2022. Although the bookmaker welcomes customers from around the world, the brand appeals most to Welsh sports betting fans with several Welsh sporting leagues covered including the Premier League, Cymru North & South leagues, Aldal leagues and the WRU Premiership & Championship.
The bookie dubs itself as ‘the ‘The Bookmaker of Wales’ and it’s not hard to see why with their coverage of Welsh sport along with betting offers which are primarily focussed around sporting events in the country.
Although Dragonbet was only recently launched, the company has a long history in the sports betting industry. The betting site is owned by Lovell Brothers Limited and built on the back of the long-established betting brand, John Lovell Racing, which has been providing betting services across Wales for over 50 years.
Upon the launch of the new betting site, David Lovell, co-founder of DragonBet, and son of John Lovell, said:
“Dragon Bet is the digital rebranding of John Lovell Racing, a prominent Welsh bookmaker and we are excited to launch our new online wagering platform with FansUnite. After months of research and interviews with gaming providers, we felt most excited and comfortable with the product and features that the Chameleon platform provides us to grow our business.”
“By growing our digital footprint where we can tailor our betting offerings to the needs of the modern bettor and maintain a strong sense of national pride and Welsh culture.”
WhichBookie reviewed Dragonbet when it first launched and found it to be an excellent betting platform that provides betting markets for around two dozen sports along with offering some generous promotions such as Best Odds Guaranteed and Money Back if 2nd on Welsh horse racing.
Currently, Dragonbet is the only online bookmaker that allows customers to bet on the Ardal League. However, Dragonbet is an excellent choice of bookie for any Welsh sports betting punter and it’s great to see them covering so much Welsh sport across both the higher and lower leagues.
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The Welsh Ardal League covers North and South Wales via two leagues, the Ardal Northern and Ardal Southern leagues.
Each division consists of 16 teams and operates on a promotion and relegation system. The champions of each division are promoted to the Cymru North or Cymru South, depending on their location, while the bottom two teams in each division are relegated to the tier 4 Welsh Football League.
The Ardal league is part of the wider Welsh football pyramid, which consists of four tiers. At the top of the pyramid is the Welsh Premier League, followed by the Cymru North and Cymru South at tier 2. The Ardal league sits at tier 3 and is followed by the Welsh Football League at tier 4.
Football has a long history in Wales with the game first introduced to the country in the late 1800s. In 1876, the Welsh Football Association (WFA) was formed, and in 1877, the first international match was played between Wales and Scotland.
The Welsh football league system began to take shape in the early 1900s with the formation of the Welsh League in 1896 and the North Wales Coast League in 1899. Over the years, the league system expanded and evolved with the creation of new leagues and the introduction of promotion and relegation.
Throughout the years, Wales has produced a number of notable footballers who have achieved success both domestically and internationally. Some of the most famous Welsh footballers include:
Ryan Giggs – Giggs is arguably the greatest Welsh footballer of all time. He spent his entire professional career at Manchester United where he won 13 Premier League titles, four FA Cups, and two Champions League titles. He also represented Wales 64 times and was appointed as the manager of the Welsh national team in 2018.
Ian Rush – Rush is another Welsh football legend who played for Liverpool for most of his career. He scored 346 goals in 660 appearances for the club and won numerous domestic and European titles. Rush also played 73 times for Wales, scoring 28 goals.
Gareth Bale – Bale is a current Welsh football star who has made a name for himself playing for Tottenham Hotspur and Real Madrid. He has won four Champions League titles, two La Liga titles, and numerous individual awards. Bale has also represented Wales 90 times, scoring 33 goals.
Mark Hughes – Hughes was a prolific striker who played for Manchester United, Barcelona, Bayern Munich, and Chelsea during his career. He also represented Wales 72 times and is now a respected manager and was in charge of the Welsh national team between 1999 – 2004.
John Charles – Charles is a Welsh football legend who played for Leeds United and Juventus in the 1950s and 60s. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest players of his generation and was known for his versatility, playing as a centre-forward, centre-back, and in midfield. Charles also represented Wales 38 times, scoring 15 goals.
In recent years, Welsh football has enjoyed a resurgence, with the national team qualifying for the European Championship in 2016 and reaching the semi-finals of the tournament. In 2022, the Welsh football team qualified for the World Cup for the first time since 1958.
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