Pride and pain - the story of Welsh football in 2021
- Published
Members of the Red Wall will head into 2022 with high hopes about the prospects for Wales' male and female sides
It was a year which brought pride and pain at the European Championship, and increasing hope that World Cups may beckon for Wales' men and women.
Wales' national sides have faced challenges in the last 12 months, but both have a chance to do something special in 2022.
Stars like Gareth Bale and Jess Fishlock are still going strong as Wales look to take on the world.
On the club scene in Wales, it has been a year of Wembley near-misses and managerial change - and a couple of Hollywood stars arriving in the National League.
BBC Sport Wales looks back at a memorable year in Welsh football.
A tour of Europe - and the road to Qatar?
At the tournament which was stretched across a continent, Wales did more travelling than most.
Euro 2020 was always going to be hard work for supporters after Uefa decided it would be played across Europe. Covid-19 - which saw the tournament delayed until this year - made any repeat of Euro 2016, when Welsh fans flooded France, impossible.
That glorious summer of five years ago, when Wales went all the way to the semi-finals, was always going to be a hard act to follow.
Wales celebrate after goals from Aaron Ramsey and Connor Roberts secured victory over Turkey
Robert Page's side gained plaudits for progressing from a tough group, as they drew with Switzerland and won a gripping contest against Turkey in Baku before losing narrowly to Italy, the eventual champions, in Rome.
Wales went to Amsterdam for round two but were thrashed 4-0 by Denmark, who emerged as one of the teams of tournament despite the shock of losing Christian Eriksen in their opening game.
Once dust settled on their exit, Wales were left with positives to grasp. They had reached the knockout stages, and they had done so despite a number of their frontline players being bit-part players at their clubs.
Wales' squad was youthful, too, meaning there is genuine hope for even brighter days ahead.
The star players, Bale and Aaron Ramsey, do not have time on their side. But despite some speculation about Bale's future, the Real Madrid forward - who reached 100 caps in November - and Ramsey are still around and eyeing a place at next year's World Cup.
Robert Page described himself as a "blubbering wreck" after Wales' draw with Belgium in November
Already guaranteed a play-off place courtesy of their Nations League performance, Wales gave themselves hope of a more favourable draw by finishing second to Belgium - the world's best team according to Fifa - in their World Cup qualifying group.
Their reward is a home play-off semi-final next March against Austria, who finished fourth in their qualifying group behind Denmark, Scotland and Israel but qualified via the Nations League.
Should Wales overcome the Austrians, they will be at home again in the play-off final, to either Scotland or Ukraine.
Clearly, there is much work to be done before Wales reach a first World Cup since 1958.
But with the likes of Italy, Portugal and Sweden involved in the play-offs, the draw was kind. Opportunity knocks for Page's side.
World Cup chance for Grainger's Wales
Page is not the only Wales manager with an eye on a World Cup, with Gemma Grainger aiming to be the first manager to lead the women's team to a major tournament.
This year began with the end of an era, as Jayne Ludlow left her role as Wales boss after seven years in charge.
Wales gave Grainger the job in March and the early signs have been promising.
Grainger's first competitive game was Wales' opening 2023 World Cup qualifier in September, in which Kazakhstan were hammered 6-0.
Wales players celebrate during their thumping win over Kazakhstan in Llanelli
Her team then claimed three more wins and a draw in Slovenia before a creditable defeat to group heavyweights France last month.
Even after that loss, Wales are second in Group I with four games to come in 2022, so have given themselves a golden play-off chance.
It says something about the progress Wales are making that the inspirational Fishlock, the National Women's Soccer League's most valuable player, was left expressing disappointment after the 2-0 loss in France.
What might have been - and where next?
Swansea City came close to bringing Premier League football back to Wales in 2021 only to be beaten meekly in May's Championship play-off final by Brentford.
That proved to be Steve Cooper's last competitive game in charge, with Swansea turning to Russell Martin in the hope that his absolute commitment to possession football could eventually lead them back to the top flight.
Andre Ayew (left) was among the players who left Swansea following play-off final defeat to Brentford
With the change of management and significant alterations to the playing squad, this looks like being a season of transition for Swansea.
They have looked very good at times, with supporters enjoying Martin's passing style, but have endured difficult moments too.
Swansea are a work in progress as they head into 2022.
Morison aims to make a mark
It has been a strange year for Cardiff City, who parted company with Neil Harris in January and then went on a sparkling run under his successor, Mick McCarthy.
An unlikely play-off push was on the agenda for a while and, though Cardiff ended up eighth, there were high hopes of what might be achieved under McCarthy in 2021-22.
Mick McCarthy left Cardiff shortly after defeat to Neil Warnock's Middlesbrough in October
The new season began with promise - Cardiff took eight points from their first four league games - only for a spectacular collapse in form which saw McCarthy depart in October with his side 21st in the table.
Cardiff have backed Steve Morison to pull them clear of relegation danger, and the former under-23 boss has overseen an upturn in results - but there is plenty of work to be done in the second half of the season.
Flynn says farewell after Morecambe misery
Newport County went into May's League Two play-offs in form, having lost just one of their last nine regular-season games.
After winning their home semi-final against Forest Green 2-0, they made it to Wembley after an extraordinary 4-3 defeat in the second leg, with Nicky Maynard's 119th-minute goal sending them through on aggregate.
Mickey Demetriou sums up the mood of his club at Wembley in May
Yet for the second time in three seasons, Newport suffered the agony of defeat in the final, with refereeing decisions going against them as Morecambe triumphed in extra time.
Mike Flynn stepped down as boss in October with his team in 15th, paving the way for Cardiff coach James Rowberry to take charge at Rodney Parade.
He has made an impressive start, giving Newport grounds for optimism heading into the second half of the season.
The start of a fairytale?
Hollywood stars Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney completed their takeover of Wrexham in February.
The National League club have since invested significantly in their playing squad and recruited a high-profile manager in Phil Parkinson, who took charge in July.
After a mixed start to the season, Parkinson's team are gaining momentum. Perhaps, after 13 years outside the Football League, this season will have a fairytale ending.
Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney made their first visit to the Racecourse in October
New Saints fighting back
Connah's Quay Nomads won their second successive Cymru Premier title in May, pipping The New Saints on the final day of the season.
Boss Andy Morrison left Nomads in October, with the Flintshire club trailing in the Saints' wake so far in 2021-22.
Swansea City won the Welsh Women's Premier League title in May and also claimed the League Cup.
The women's game in Wales was restructured at the end of the season - but it is Swansea leading the way once more in the new Genero Adran Premier division.