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119-592: Swansea City Association Football Club ( / ˈ s w ɒ n z i / SWON -zee ; Welsh : Clwb Pêl-droed Cymdeithas Dinas Abertawe ) is a Welsh professional football club based in Swansea , Wales. It competes in the Championship , the second tier of English football . Swansea have played their home matches at the Swansea.com Stadium (formerly known as the Liberty Stadium) since 2005, having previously played at

238-527: A 0–5 victory over Queens Park Rangers away at Loftus Road . Swansea then beat West Ham United 3–0 at the Liberty Stadium , with Michu scoring his third goal in two games. This saw Swansea top of the Premier League; it was the first time since October 1981 the team had been at the summit of the top tier. On 15 October 2012, the club announced a profit of £14.2 million after their first season in

357-441: A Welsh Language Scheme, which indicates its commitment to the equality of treatment principle. This is sent out in draft form for public consultation for a three-month period, whereupon comments on it may be incorporated into a final version. It requires the final approval of the now defunct Welsh Language Board ( Bwrdd yr Iaith Gymraeg ). Thereafter, the public body is charged with implementing and fulfilling its obligations under

476-586: A Welsh-language edge inscription was used on pound coins dated 1985, 1990 and 1995, which circulated in all parts of the UK prior to their 2017 withdrawal. The wording is Pleidiol wyf i'm gwlad (Welsh for 'True am I to my country'), and derives from the national anthem of Wales, " Hen Wlad Fy Nhadau ". UK banknotes are in English only. Some shops employ bilingual signage. Welsh sometimes appears on product packaging or instructions. The UK government has ratified

595-647: A census glossary of terms to support the release of results from the census, including their definition of "main language" as referring to "first or preferred language" (though that wording was not in the census questionnaire itself). The wards in England with the most people giving Welsh as their main language were the Liverpool wards of Central and Greenbank ; and Oswestry South in Shropshire . The wards of Oswestry South (1.15%), Oswestry East (0.86%) and St Oswald (0.71%) had

714-405: A fair amount. 56 per cent of Welsh speakers speak the language daily, and 19 per cent speak the language weekly. The Welsh Government plans to increase the number of Welsh-language speakers to one million by 2050. Since 1980, the number of children attending Welsh-medium schools has increased, while the number going to Welsh bilingual and dual-medium schools has decreased. Welsh is considered

833-460: A famous 7-0 win over Derby County (a side they had lost 1-0 to only a day before) during Easter that kept the Swans in the division. That season, Swans conceded a record 99 goals in the league. In 1964, the Swans reached a second FA Cup semi-final, beating Barrow , Sheffield United and Stoke City en route to a famous sixth round victory at Anfield. Few gave the Swans, struggling for their lives at

952-399: A new language altogether. The argued dates for the period of "Primitive Welsh" are widely debated, with some historians' suggestions differing by hundreds of years. The next main period is Old Welsh ( Hen Gymraeg , 9th to 11th centuries); poetry from both Wales and Scotland has been preserved in this form of the language. As Germanic and Gaelic colonisation of Britain proceeded,

1071-469: A number of new defensive players and set a record of seven consecutive home clean sheets, all victories. The Swans' last season at the Vetch Field saw the club win promotion on the last day of the season, clinching a 3rd-placed finish with a 1–0 win away to Bury . Their last league game at their old ground was a 1–0 win over Shrewsbury Town , with the last game of any sort being a 2–1 win against Wrexham in

1190-547: A poor run of form; however later investigation revealed financial impropriety involving Laudrup's agent Bayram Tutumlu. Defender Garry Monk , a Swansea player since 2004, was named as his replacement. In Monk's first game in charge, Swansea beat Cardiff 3–0 at the Liberty Stadium on 8 February 2014. Despite holding Rafael Benítez 's Napoli to a 0–0 draw in the first leg of the Europa League Round of 32 , Swansea exited

1309-477: A promotion challenge in 1971–72, but an awful run towards the end of the season resulted in a mid-table finish. A poor start the following season, combined with falling attendances, saw Bentley resign, and he was replaced by Harry Gregg . Gregg failed to stop the rot and the club was back in the Fourth Division for 1973–74 season. A record low crowd of just 1,358 watched the Swans against Northampton Town , and

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1428-479: A single discourse (known in linguistics as code-switching ). Welsh speakers are largely concentrated in the north and west of Wales, principally Gwynedd , Conwy County Borough , Denbighshire , Anglesey , Carmarthenshire , north Pembrokeshire , Ceredigion , parts of Glamorgan , and north-west and extreme south-west Powys . However, first-language and other fluent speakers can be found throughout Wales. Welsh-speaking communities persisted well into

1547-470: A supporters' trust in the direct running of a club". Though based in Wales, they play in the English football league system. The area around Swansea traditionally had been a rugby area, and despite previous attempts by a football club named Swansea Villa, there were no notable football clubs until the establishment of ' Swansea Town AFC' in the summer of 1912. Following the lead of many other South Wales sides,

1666-437: A then-record fee of £3.5 million. They defeated Arsenal , Liverpool and Manchester City , the eventual champions, at home during the season. Swansea finished their debut Premier League season in 11th, but at the end of the season Brendan Rodgers left to manage Liverpool. He was replaced by Michael Laudrup for the 2012–13 Premier League season , which was the club's centenary season. Laudrup's first league game ended in

1785-656: A total of 92 points over the course of the season, the highest ever by a Welsh club in the Football League. Five Swansea players were in the PFA Team of the Year, including the division's 29-goal top scorer Jason Scotland . That same season Swansea lost on penalties to Milton Keynes Dons in the area final of the Football League Trophy . Upon returning to the second tier of English football after 24 years Swansea City finished

1904-640: Is available throughout Europe on satellite and online throughout the UK. Since the digital switchover was completed in South Wales on 31 March 2010, S4C Digidol became the main broadcasting channel and fully in Welsh. The main evening television news provided by the BBC in Welsh is available for download. There is also a Welsh-language radio station, BBC Radio Cymru , which was launched in 1977. Football League Third Division Most of these clubs were drawn from what

2023-560: Is based in Brisbane) football team, fronted by Tony Petty. Seven players were sacked and eight others saw their contracts terminated. During this period Hollins was sacked after a poor start to the season, and Colin Addison took over as manager. The turmoil led to the creation of the Swansea City supporters' trust , which sought to save the club and ultimately guarantee supporter representation on

2142-420: Is evidenced by the dropping of final syllables from Brittonic: * bardos 'poet' became bardd , and * abona 'river' became afon . Though both Davies and Jackson cite minor changes in syllable structure and sounds as evidence for the creation of Old Welsh, Davies suggests it may be more appropriate to refer to this derivative language as Lingua Britannica rather than characterising it as

2261-569: Is spoken by smaller numbers of people in Canada and the United States descended from Welsh immigrants, within their households (especially in Nova Scotia ). Historically, it has also been known in English as "British", "Cambrian", "Cambric" and "Cymric". The Welsh Language (Wales) Measure 2011 gave the Welsh language official status in Wales. Welsh and English are de jure official languages of

2380-494: The 2016 Australian census , 1,688 people noted that they spoke Welsh. In the 2011 Canadian census , 3,885 people reported Welsh as their first language . According to the 2021 Canadian census , 1,130 people noted that Welsh was their mother tongue. The 2018 New Zealand census noted that 1,083 people in New Zealand spoke Welsh. The American Community Survey 2009–2013 noted that 2,235 people aged five years and over in

2499-461: The 2021 census , 7,349 people in England recorded Welsh to be their "main language". In the 2011 census, 1,189 people aged three and over in Scotland noted that Welsh was a language (other than English) that they used at home. It is believed that there are as many as 5,000 speakers of Patagonian Welsh . In response to the question 'Does the person speak a language other than English at home?' in

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2618-659: The Battle of Dyrham , a military battle between the West Saxons and the Britons in 577 AD, which split the South Western British from direct overland contact with the Welsh. Four periods are identified in the history of Welsh, with rather indistinct boundaries: Primitive Welsh, Old Welsh, Middle Welsh, and Modern Welsh. The period immediately following the language's emergence is sometimes referred to as Primitive Welsh, followed by

2737-525: The European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages in respect of Welsh. The language has greatly increased its prominence since the creation of the television channel S4C in November 1982, which until digital switchover in 2010 broadcast 70 per cent of Channel 4's programming along with a majority of Welsh language shows during peak viewing hours. The all-Welsh-language digital station S4C Digidol

2856-622: The Football League Third Division North was formed with the Northern clubs, the two Divisions jointly forming the third tier. Geographical separation was abolished in 1958 with the creation of the Football League Fourth Division . The original members in 1958–59 were: Of these, Bournemouth, Bradford, Brentford, Hull, Norwich, Notts, QPR, Reading, Southampton , and Swindon have made the top flight in either

2975-525: The Football League Trophy for the first time since 1994, and the FAW Premier Cup for a second successive year. In the following season Jackett resigned as manager in mid-season to be replaced by Roberto Martínez . Martínez's arrival saw an improvement in form, but Swansea missed out on the play-offs again. The following season, an 18-game unbeaten run helped them to the League One title. The club amassed

3094-525: The Fourth Division after relegations in 1965 and 1967. The club changed their name to Swansea City in 1969 to reflect Swansea's new status as a city . They were promoted at the end of the 1969–70 season. Swansea won three promotions in four seasons to reach the First Division in 1981. They finished sixth the following season, a club record. The club suffered a relegation the season after, returning to

3213-508: The Old Welsh period – which is generally considered to stretch from the beginning of the 9th century to sometime during the 12th century. The Middle Welsh period is considered to have lasted from then until the 14th century, when the Modern Welsh period began, which in turn is divided into Early and Late Modern Welsh. The word Welsh is a descendant, via Old English wealh, wielisc , of

3332-662: The Proto-Germanic word * Walhaz , which was derived from the name of the Celtic people known to the Romans as Volcae and which came to refer to speakers of Celtic languages, and then indiscriminately to the people of the Western Roman Empire . In Old English the term went through semantic narrowing , coming to refer to either Britons in particular or, in some contexts, slaves. The plural form Wēalas evolved into

3451-618: The United States spoke Welsh at home. The highest number of those (255) lived in Florida . Sources: Calls for the Welsh language to be granted official status grew with the establishment of the nationalist political party Plaid Cymru in 1925, the establishment of the Welsh Language Society in 1962 and the rise of Welsh nationalism in the later 20th century. Of the six living Celtic languages (including two revived), Welsh has

3570-523: The Vetch Field for an FA Cup Fourth Round match against Arsenal . A tragedy struck the club on 20 January 1969 when players Roy Evans and Brian Purcell were killed in a car crash on the way to a game. In 1969, the club name was changed to Swansea City, and Roy Bentley 's side celebrated by securing promotion back to the Third Division. A record run of 19 matches unbeaten provided the foundations for

3689-695: The Vetch Field since the club was founded. The club was founded in 1912 as Swansea Town and entered into the Southern League , winning the Welsh Cup in their debut season. They were admitted into the Football League in 1920 and won the Third Division South title in 1924–25. They again won the Third Division South title in 1948–49, having been relegated two years previously. They fell into

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3808-579: The Welsh Cup was won for the first time. The Swans beat reigning English champions Blackburn Rovers 1–0 in the first round of the 1914–15 FA Cup , Swansea's goal coming from Ben Beynon . Following the First World War the Southern League dropped its Second Division, and with many clubs dropping out due to financial difficulties, the Swans were placed in the First Division. After four seasons in

3927-418: The "Mel Nurse Consortium" time to organize its finances. Having successfully reorganized the finances of Hull City, both Moore and Griffin were believers in clubs belonging in the hands of local people, and so believing Nurse's group were best for The Swans, subsequently passed the club onto Nurses consortium for the fee of £1. Despite problems off the pitch, Addison's side had managed a mid-table position, but he

4046-525: The "hugely important role", adding, "I look forward to working with the Welsh Government and organisations in Wales in developing the new system of standards. I will look to build on the good work that has been done by the Welsh Language Board and others to strengthen the Welsh language and ensure that it continues to thrive." First Minister Carwyn Jones said that Huws would act as a champion for

4165-467: The 12th to 14th centuries, of which much more remains than for any earlier period. This is the language of nearly all surviving early manuscripts of the Mabinogion , although the tales themselves are certainly much older. It is also the language of the existing Welsh law manuscripts. Middle Welsh is reasonably intelligible to a modern-day Welsh speaker. The Bible translations into Welsh helped maintain

4284-589: The 1880s identified a small part of Shropshire as still then speaking Welsh, with the "Celtic Border" passing from Llanymynech through Oswestry to Chirk . The number of Welsh-speaking people in the rest of Britain has not yet been counted for statistical purposes. In 1993, the Welsh-language television channel S4C published the results of a survey into the numbers of people who spoke or understood Welsh, which estimated that there were around 133,000 Welsh-speaking people living in England, about 50,000 of them in

4403-420: The 1955–56 season, when a side containing the likes of Ivor Allchurch , Terry Medwin , Harry Griffiths and Tom Kiley led the table early in the season, before an injury to Kiley, referred to as the linchpin of the side, in mid-November led to a decline in form. He was never adequately replaced, but despite this and the sale of some of the club's best players, the side remained in contention for promotion until

4522-522: The 1993 Act nor secondary legislation made under it covers the private sector, although some organisations, notably banks and some railway companies, provide some of their information in Welsh. On 7 December 2010, the Welsh Assembly unanimously approved a set of measures to develop the use of the Welsh language within Wales. On 9 February 2011 this measure, the Welsh Language (Wales) Measure 2011 ,

4641-457: The 2008–09 season in eighth place, and missed out on the play-offs the following season by a single point. After 63 wins in 126 games for Swansea City, Martínez left for Wigan Athletic on 15 June 2009 with his tenure returning just 26 losses in that time. He was replaced by Portuguese Paulo Sousa . Sousa subsequently left Swansea to take charge at Leicester City on 5 July 2010, lasting just one year and 13 days in South Wales. However, just before

4760-481: The Assembly which confirms the official status of the Welsh language; which creates a strong advocate for Welsh speakers and will improve the quality and quantity of services available through the medium of Welsh. I believe that everyone who wants to access services in the Welsh language should be able to do so, and that is what this government has worked towards. This legislation is an important and historic step forward for

4879-508: The Brittonic speakers in Wales were split off from those in northern England, speaking Cumbric, and those in the southwest, speaking what would become Cornish , so the languages diverged. Both the works of Aneirin ( Canu Aneirin , c.  600 ) and the Book of Taliesin ( Canu Taliesin ) were written during this era. Middle Welsh ( Cymraeg Canol ) is the label attached to the Welsh of

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4998-705: The Celtic language spoken by the ancient Celtic Britons . Classified as Insular Celtic , the British language probably arrived in Britain during the Bronze Age or Iron Age and was probably spoken throughout the island south of the Firth of Forth . During the Early Middle Ages the British language began to fragment due to increased dialect differentiation, thus evolving into Welsh and

5117-484: The Championship play-offs. After beating Nottingham Forest 3–1 on aggregate in the semi-final they defeated Reading 4–2 in the final at Wembley Stadium , with Scott Sinclair scoring a hat-trick. [REDACTED] By being promoted to the Premier League for the 2011–12 season, Swansea became the first Welsh team to play in the division since its formation in 1992. Swansea signed Danny Graham from Watford for

5236-533: The First Division or the Premier League era. Stockport, Doncaster, Notts County and Rochdale were the first to be relegated into the Fourth Division the following season (1959–60), starting the bottom-four-team turnover tradition for the third tier. As with the Second Division, the champion and runner-up were automatically promoted; the third place was also promoted automatically beginning in 1974. Play-offs for

5355-534: The Fourth Division by 1986 and then narrowly avoiding relegation to the Conference in 2003 . In 2011, they were promoted to the Premier League and won the League Cup two years later, beating Bradford City 5–0 in the final. It was the competition's highest ever winning margin for the final, with Swansea winning the first major trophy in the club's history and qualifying for the 2013–14 UEFA Europa League . The club

5474-539: The Greater London area. The Welsh Language Board , on the basis of an analysis of the Office for National Statistics Longitudinal Study, estimated there were 110,000 Welsh-speaking people in England, and another thousand in Scotland and Northern Ireland. In the 2011 census , 8,248 people in England gave Welsh in answer to the question "What is your main language?" The Office for National Statistics subsequently published

5593-401: The Premier League's top scorer for the 2014 calendar year, with 20 goals. Swansea City finished eighth in the Premier League at the end of the 2014–15 season with 56 points, their highest position and points haul for a Premier League season, and second highest finish in the top flight of all time. During the season, they produced league doubles over Arsenal and Manchester United , becoming only

5712-458: The Premier League. On 1 December, Swansea picked up a 0–2 away win against Arsenal, with Michu scoring twice during the last minutes of the game, in Swansea's first win at Arsenal in three decades. Michu ended the season as the club's top scorer in all competitions, with 22 goals. On 24 February 2013, Swansea beat Bradford City 0–5 in the League Cup final en route to the biggest win in the final of

5831-567: The Southern League, Swansea Town became founder members of the new Third Division of The Football League in 1920 and then Division Three (South) the following season. After five seasons in Division Three (South) and a few failed bids for promotion, the Swans reached the Second Division for the first time in 1925, beating Exeter City 2–1 at home on the final day of the season to win the division. The side had remained unbeaten at home in

5950-467: The Swans to Wembley for the first time in their history for the final of the Autoglass Trophy. Wins over Plymouth Argyle & Exeter City in the group stage followed by triumphs over Exeter again, Port Vale , Leyton Orient and Wycombe Wanderers over two legs saw the Swans play Huddersfield Town in a final that finished 1–1. The Swans went on to win 3–1 on penalties. In the following season,

6069-405: The Third Division (South) title with all three South Wales clubs – and without losing a home game with Swansea or Cardiff. Following promotion, the Swans had another 15 years of Second Division football to look forward to, however despite what successive managers and chairmen were to say, Swansea Town only once during that time looked like they could genuinely challenge for promotion. That came in

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6188-535: The Welsh Cup that season, qualifying for Europe for the first time since the 1965–66 season. The 1981–82 season began with the fixture computer handing Swansea a first-day home game against Leeds United , which the club promptly won 5–1 with a hat-trick by debutant Bob Latchford . Swansea had swept from the basement division to the top of the entire Football League in three years. Victories over Liverpool , Manchester United , Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur followed as

6307-489: The Welsh Language (Wales) Measure 2011, all new signs have Welsh displayed first. There have been incidents of one of the languages being vandalised, which may be considered a hate crime . Since 2000, the teaching of Welsh has been compulsory in all schools in Wales up to age 16; this has had an effect in stabilising and reversing the decline in the language. Text on UK coins tends to be in English and Latin. However,

6426-673: The Welsh Language Scheme. The list of other public bodies which have to prepare Schemes could be added to by initially the Secretary of State for Wales, from 1993 to 1997, by way of statutory instrument . Subsequent to the forming of the National Assembly for Wales in 1997, the Government Minister responsible for the Welsh language can and has passed statutory instruments naming public bodies who have to prepare Schemes. Neither

6545-865: The Welsh Parliament, the Senedd , with Welsh being the only de jure official language in any part of the United Kingdom, with English being merely de facto official. According to the 2021 census , the Welsh-speaking population of Wales aged three or older was 538,300 (17.8%) and nearly three quarters of the population in Wales said they had no Welsh language skills. Other estimates suggest that 862,700 people (28.0%) aged three or older in Wales could speak Welsh in March 2024. Almost half of all Welsh speakers consider themselves fluent, while 20 per cent are able to speak

6664-445: The Welsh language, though some had concerns over her appointment: Plaid Cymru spokeswoman Bethan Jenkins said, "I have concerns about the transition from Meri Huws's role from the Welsh Language Board to the language commissioner, and I will be asking the Welsh government how this will be successfully managed. We must be sure that there is no conflict of interest, and that the Welsh Language Commissioner can demonstrate how she will offer

6783-426: The Welsh of the 16th century, but they are similar enough for a fluent Welsh speaker to have little trouble understanding it. During the Modern Welsh period, there has been a decline in the popularity of the Welsh language: the number of Welsh speakers declined to the point at which there was concern that the language would become extinct. During industrialisation in the late 19th century, immigrants from England led to

6902-429: The Welsh-speaking heartlands, with the number dropping to under 50 per cent in Ceredigion and Carmarthenshire for the first time. However, according to the Welsh Language Use Survey in 2019–20, 22 per cent of people aged three and over were able to speak Welsh. The Annual Population Survey (APS) by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) estimated that as of March 2024, approximately 862,700, or 28.0 per cent of

7021-403: The ancestor of Cumbric as well as Welsh. Jackson, however, believed that the two varieties were already distinct by that time. The earliest Welsh poetry – that attributed to the Cynfeirdd or "Early Poets" – is generally considered to date to the Primitive Welsh period. However, much of this poetry was supposedly composed in the Hen Ogledd , raising further questions about the dating of

7140-428: The ball rebounded off the crossbar then into the net off his knee, and two early goals in the second leg gave the Baggies the advantage, until midfielder Micky Mellon was sent off. Burrows brought on Colin West , but he was sent off minutes later, ending any hopes of a Wembley final. Although the league campaign the following season did not live up the previous one, mainly due to the sale of key players, Burrows guided

7259-591: The beginning of April. Following a 6–1 win over second placed Leicester City at the Vetch Field at the end of March the side was just two points behind second placed Liverpool with a game in hand – however subsequent results were not as encouraging, and they eventually slipped away to finish tenth. The Swans finished tenth for the third consecutive season in 1956–57. This season saw the club finish with its highest ever rate of goals per game (90 in total). This figure included big victories against Blackburn Rovers (5–1) and Bristol City (5–0) but 90 goals were conceded at

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7378-499: The bottom of Division Two, any chance of causing an upset against the league leaders. But the Swans were 0–2 up at half-time thanks to Jimmy McLaughlin and Eddie Thomas. Liverpool turned up the pressure in the second half, pulling a goal back before being awarded a penalty nine minutes from time. Ronnie Moran had established an excellent record as a penalty taker, but tic reviv to beat the excellent Noel Dwyer on this occasion. Fellow second division side Preston North End awaited in

7497-408: The census. In terms of usage, ONS also reported that 14.4 per cent (443,800) of people aged three or older in Wales reported that they spoke Welsh daily in March 2024, with 5.4 per cent (165,500) speaking it weekly and 6.5 per cent (201,200) less often. Approximately 1.7 per cent (51,700) reported that they never spoke Welsh despite being able to speak the language, with the remaining 72.0 per cent of

7616-420: The club again reached the semi-finals of the Auto Windscreens Shield, eventually going out to Birmingham City , and an eventful FA Cup run saw them win at Middlesbrough in a third round replay, before going out to Newcastle United at St James' Park . The 1995–96 season ended with relegation back to the third division after eight years. The Swans were doing fine around Christmas time, but a complete collapse in

7735-405: The club joined the Second Division of the Southern League for the following season. J. W. Thorpe was the club's first chairman. A site owned by Swansea Gaslight Co., called Vetch Field due to the vegetables that grew there, was rented to be the club's ground. The club's first professional match was a 1–1 draw at the Vetch Field against Cardiff City on 7 September 1912. During that first season

7854-401: The club reached the final of the 1997 Third Division promotion play-offs but lost to Northampton Town , whose goal came from a re-taken free kick by John Frain in the final minute. Mølby was sacked just weeks into the following season, with Swansea struggling near the foot of the league. After the initial optimism, the Liverpool connection had not caused history to repeat itself. Alan Cork

7973-405: The club topped the league on several further occasions. However, injuries to key players took their toll, and the lack of depth in the squad meant that the season ended in sixth-place finish. Two consecutive relegations followed, and Toshack was sacked. By 1985, the club was battling for its very survival on two fronts. Whilst its creditors lined up a High Court hearing with the aim of liquidating

8092-399: The club's best young talent as previous boards had done. Despite promising performances during the first half of the 1977–78 season, Harry Griffiths resigned as Swansea City's manager in February 1978, doubting his own ability to take the club any further. The new manager was former Liverpool , Cardiff City and Wales striker John Toshack . On 1 March 1978, at 28 years old, Toshack became

8211-446: The club's board. The Petty group sold its stake in January 2002 after a bitter stand-off with the Mel Nurse consortium, which was supported by the majority of the club's fans. Jim Moore and Mel Griffin, previously rescuers of Hull City, stepped into the breach and persuaded Petty to sell to them (as he had promised to bankrupt the club & make it extinct rather than sell to Nurse). From there Moore became chairman for three weeks giving

8330-403: The club, Swansea City had come to rely on a combination of old players and young professionals. Wound up by court order in December 1985, Swansea City was saved by local businessman Doug Sharpe who took over the running of the club, although the change of ownership was not enough to prevent relegation to the Fourth Division in 1986. Eight years on from the first promotion under Toshack, the club

8449-440: The competition after losing 3–1 in the second leg at the Stadio San Paolo on 27 February 2014. In January 2015, Wilfried Bony was sold to Manchester City for a record sale of £25 million, with add-ons reportedly leading to £28 million. This deal eclipsed the record fee received from Liverpool for Joe Allen at £15 million. At the time of the sale, Bony was the club's top scorer with 34 goals in all competitions, and

8568-437: The competition. This triumph, in a record victory, was Swansea's first major piece of silverware and qualified them for the 2013–14 UEFA Europa League . Swansea finished the season in ninth place in the Premier League, improving upon the league standing achieved in the previous season. On 11 July, Swansea paid a club record transfer fee of £12 million to secure the signing of striker Wilfried Bony from Vitesse Arnhem ; Bony

8687-414: The course of the 20th century this monolingual population all but disappeared, but a small percentage remained at the time of the 1981 census. Most Welsh-speaking people in Wales also speak English. However, many Welsh-speaking people are more comfortable expressing themselves in Welsh than in English. A speaker's choice of language can vary according to the subject domain and the social context, even within

8806-470: The decline in Welsh speakers particularly in the South Wales Valleys. Welsh government processes and legislation have worked to increase the proliferation of the Welsh language, for example through education. Welsh has been spoken continuously in Wales throughout history; however, by 1911, it had become a minority language, spoken by 43.5 per cent of the population. While this decline continued over

8925-430: The departure of Sousa, on 15 May 2010, Swansea player Besian Idrizaj suffered a heart attack in his native Austria while on international duty. The club retired the number 40 shirt in his memory, and the players wore shirts dedicated to Idrizaj after their victory in the play-off final. Northern Irishman Brendan Rodgers took charge for the 2010–11 season. He guided the club to a third-placed finish and qualification for

9044-592: The final of the 2005 FAW Premier Cup . [REDACTED] The club moved to the new Liberty Stadium during the summer of 2005. The first competitive game was a 1–0 victory against Tranmere Rovers in August 2005. In their first season back in League One, Swansea, after beating Brentford in the semi-finals, lost on penalties to Barnsley in the final at the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff. That same season, Swansea won

9163-547: The first bottom division team to defeat a Premiership club in the FA Cup since the re-organisation of the league structure in 1992. The club was promoted in 2000 as Division Three champions, following a championship decider on the final day of the season against second-placed Rotherham United . The side conceded just 32 goals during the 1999–2000 season , largely due to the form of excellent centre-back pairing Jason Smith and Matthew Bound , as well as keeper Roger Freestone . During

9282-485: The following decades, the language did not die out. The smallest number of speakers was recorded in 1981 with 503,000 although the lowest percentage was recorded in the most recent census in 2021 at 17.8 per cent. By the start of the 21st century, numbers began to increase once more, at least partly as a result of the increase in Welsh-medium education . The 2004 Welsh Language Use Survey showed that 21.7 per cent of

9401-427: The following season the Swans were forced to apply for re-election to the Football League after a last day defeat at Rochdale condemned them to a 21st-place finish. The application was a success, although by now former player Harry Griffiths had replaced Gregg as manager. Malcolm Struel also took over as chairman, having previously been on the board, and promised a return to former glories, stating that he would not sell

9520-463: The highest number of native speakers who use the language on a daily basis, and it is the Celtic language which is considered the least endangered by UNESCO . The Welsh Language Act 1993 and the Government of Wales Act 1998 provide that the Welsh and English languages be treated equally in the public sector, as far as is reasonable and practicable. Each public body is required to prepare for approval

9639-469: The highest percentage of residents giving Welsh as their main language. The census also revealed that 3,528 wards in England, or 46% of the total number, contained at least one resident whose main language is Welsh. In terms of the regions of England , North West England (1,945), London (1,310) and the West Midlands (1,265) had the highest number of people noting Welsh as their main language. According to

9758-455: The knowledge that victory would assure them a place in the First Division for the first time in the club's history. A 3–1 win guaranteed a third promotion in four seasons and Swansea City joined the footballing elite. The goalscorers on that day at Deepdale were Tommy Craig , Leighton James and Jeremy Charles . The four-year rise from basement to top division is a record in English football, held jointly with Wimbledon F.C. Swansea also won

9877-496: The language, its speakers and for the nation." The measure was not welcomed warmly by all supporters: Bethan Williams, chairman of the Welsh Language Society, gave a mixed response to the move, saying, "Through this measure we have won official status for the language and that has been warmly welcomed. But there was a core principle missing in the law passed by the Assembly before Christmas. It doesn't give language rights to

9996-436: The last day of the season, at the expense of Exeter City , a club then vice-chaired by Mike Lewis. Brian Flynn's side finished 2003–04 10th and reached the fifth round of the FA Cup for the first time in 24 years, eventually losing 2–1 at Tranmere Rovers . Flynn was dismissed and replaced by Kenny Jackett . Jackett lost his first six matches in charge, ending any hope of a play-off place. The following season Jackett recruited

10115-404: The league all season – something the next promotion team would emulate over twenty years later. The following season the Swans reached the semi-finals of the FA Cup for the first time, beating Exeter City, Watford , Blackpool , Stoke City, Millwall and Arsenal , before losing 3–0 to eventual cup winners Bolton Wanderers at White Hart Lane . Swans record their highest average attendance during

10234-402: The least endangered Celtic language by UNESCO . The language of the Welsh developed from the language of Britons . The emergence of Welsh was not instantaneous and clearly identifiable. Instead, the shift occurred over a long period, with some historians claiming that it had happened by as late as the 9th century , with a watershed moment being that proposed by linguist Kenneth H. Jackson ,

10353-655: The material and language in which it was originally composed. This discretion stems from the fact that Cumbric was widely believed to have been the language used in Hen Ogledd. An 8th-century inscription in Tywyn shows the language already dropping inflections in the declension of nouns. Janet Davies proposed that the origins of the Welsh language were much less definite; in The Welsh Language: A History , she proposes that Welsh may have been around even earlier than 600 AD. This

10472-610: The modern period across the border in England. Archenfield was still Welsh enough in the time of Elizabeth I for the Bishop of Hereford to be made responsible, together with the four Welsh bishops, for the translation of the Bible and the Book of Common Prayer into Welsh. Welsh was still commonly spoken there in the first half of the 19th century, and churchwardens' notices were put up in both Welsh and English until about 1860. Alexander John Ellis in

10591-592: The name for their territory, Wales. The modern names for various Romance-speaking people in Continental Europe (e.g. Walloons , Valaisans , Vlachs / Wallachians , and Włosi , the Polish name for Italians) have a similar etymology. The Welsh term for the language, Cymraeg , descends from the Brythonic word combrogi , meaning 'compatriots' or 'fellow countrymen'. Welsh evolved from Common Brittonic ,

10710-613: The other Brittonic languages. It is not clear when Welsh became distinct. Linguist Kenneth H. Jackson has suggested that the evolution in syllabic structure and sound pattern was complete by around AD 550, and labelled the period between then and about AD 800 "Primitive Welsh". This Primitive Welsh may have been spoken in both Wales and the Hen Ogledd ('Old North') – the Brittonic-speaking areas of what are now northern England and southern Scotland – and therefore may have been

10829-466: The other end, including a 7-3 drubbing at Fulham . The 1957-58 season was one of struggle for the Swans and they spent much of the season in the relegation zone. Despite a 5-1 derby victory over Cardiff before Christmas, the Swans struggled to maintain any form. The departure of Cliff Jones to Tottenham in February compounded matters and it was only a dramatic revival towards the end of the season, including

10948-464: The people of Wales in every aspect of their lives. Despite that, an amendment to that effect was supported by 18 Assembly Members from three different parties, and that was a significant step forward." On 5 October 2011, Meri Huws , Chair of the Welsh Language Board , was appointed the new Welsh Language Commissioner. She released a statement that she was "delighted" to have been appointed to

11067-422: The playoff semi-finals in 1993 and make their first Wembley Stadium appearance a year later. Burrows guided the Swans to within 180 minutes of Wembley in 1993 – a run of five wins in the last six league matches (all at home) secured a playoff place, and with five minutes remaining of the first leg of the semi-final against West Bromwich Albion , the Swans were 2–0 up. Andy McFarlane scored an own goal when

11186-471: The population not being able to speak it. The National Survey for Wales, conducted by Welsh Government, has also tended to report a higher percentage of Welsh speakers than the census, with the most recent results for 2022–2023 suggesting that 18 per cent of the population aged 3 and over were able to speak Welsh, with an additional 16 per cent noting that they had some Welsh-speaking ability. Historically, large numbers of Welsh people spoke only Welsh. Over

11305-502: The population of Wales aged 3 and over, were able to speak the language. Children and young people aged three to 15 years old were more likely to report that they could speak Welsh than any other age group (48.4 per cent, 241,300). Around 1,001,500 people, or 32.5 per cent, reported that they could understand spoken Welsh. 24.7 per cent (759,200) could read and 22.2 per cent (684,500) could write in Welsh. The APS estimates of Welsh language ability are historically higher than those produced by

11424-407: The population of Wales spoke Welsh, compared with 20.8 per cent in the 2001 census , and 18.5 per cent in the 1991 census . Since 2001, however, the number of Welsh speakers has declined in both the 2011 and 2021 censuses to about 538,300 or 17.8 per cent in 2021, lower than 1991, although it is still higher in absolute terms. The 2011 census also showed a "big drop" in the number of speakers in

11543-479: The required fresh approach to this new role." Huws started her role as the Welsh Language Commissioner on 1 April 2012. Local councils and the Senedd use Welsh, issuing Welsh versions of their literature, to varying degrees. Road signs in Wales are in Welsh and English. Prior to 2016, the choice of which language to display first was the responsibility of the local council. Since then, as part of

11662-438: The season of 16,118 for pre-war league games. During the 1926–27 season they beat Real Madrid 3–0 on tour. During the 1931–32 season they finished 1st in the league and won the Welsh Cup after beating Wrexham 2–0 away after a replay. After just one season back from wartime football, the Swans finished 21st in the Second Division , and thus returned to Division Three (South) for the first time since 1925. The following season

11781-411: The season the side set a record of nine consecutive league victories, and, during the same period, seven consecutive clean sheets. Striker Walter Boyd also set an unwanted record of being the fastest substitute ever sent off, when he was red-carded for striking a Darlington player seconds after being brought on and before play had resumed, therefore being officially recorded as zero seconds. Promotion

11900-473: The second half of the season, including a 7–0 FA Cup defeat at third division Fulham , 4–0 and 5–1 defeats at Blackpool and Oxford United respectively, led to relegation, despite the arrival of Jan Mølby . Relegation in 1996 was accompanied by a club record of being managed by four men in the same season. Kevin Cullis was appointed as manager by a consortium wishing to buy the club. Cullis’ previous experience

12019-436: The semi-final at Villa Park , but despite taking the lead through McLaughlin again, the Swans were to be denied by a second half penalty and a wonder goal from nearly 40 yards. After flirting with relegation on a few occasions during the previous seasons, the Swans' luck finally ran out a season later in 1965, and they were back in the Third Division. Following relegation, Trevor Morris , who had been manager since 1958,

12138-451: The side at all during the summer, and despite a decent start, a 5–1 defeat at big-spending Reading in September led to a slide down the table, and the side won just eight games all season, and only Oxford United finished below them. Relegation seemed certain following a 5–3 defeat at fellow strugglers Luton Town , where Giovanni Savarese scored a hat-trick, however Hollins maintained that

12257-458: The side could stay up, even when 18 points were needed from the final six matches, and for two other teams to pick up no more points. In July 2001, following relegation back to Third Division , the club was sold to managing director Mike Lewis for £1. Lewis subsequently sold on his stake to a consortium of Australian businessmen behind the Brisbane Lions (An Australian Rules Football team that

12376-405: The third promotion place were introduced in 1987. AFC Bournemouth, formerly Bournemouth & Boscombe Athletic, hold the record as the club to have spent most time in this division. The Third Division of English football lasted for a total of 72 years, the first 38 years as two regionalised divisions (although just 31 seasons were played due to the advent of World War II ) before a 34-year run as

12495-669: The third team in Premier League history to achieve that feat. Welsh language Welsh ( Cymraeg [kəmˈraːiɡ] or y Gymraeg [ə ɡəmˈraːiɡ] ) is a Celtic language of the Brittonic subgroup that is native to the Welsh people . Welsh is spoken natively in Wales , by some in England , and in Y Wladfa (the Welsh colony in Chubut Province , Argentina ). It

12614-518: The use of Welsh in daily life, and standardised spelling. The New Testament was translated by William Salesbury in 1567, and the complete Bible by William Morgan in 1588. Modern Welsh is subdivided into Early Modern Welsh and Late Modern Welsh. Early Modern Welsh ran from the 15th century through to the end of the 16th century, and the Late Modern Welsh period roughly dates from the 16th century onwards. Contemporary Welsh differs greatly from

12733-447: The youngest manager in the Football League , with Griffiths as his assistant. Thus began a remarkable climb from the Fourth Division to the top of the entire league. Despite relinquishing his role as manager before the end of the season, this was Griffiths' team, and the promotion from the Fourth Division was largely his doing. During this season, the Swans' record league win was achieved (8–0 against Hartlepool United ). Before promotion

12852-481: Was appointed as manager, but was dismissed after leading the club to its lowest league finish for 23 years. John Hollins was appointed, and things soon started to improve. In 1999, the club reached the promotion playoffs , only to lose in extra time at Scunthorpe United . The season included a third round FA Cup victory over Premiership opponents West Ham United , whose team included Frank Lampard , Joe Cole , Rio Ferdinand and John Hartson . Swansea thus became

12971-417: Was back where it had started. Swansea won promotion from the Fourth Division in 1988 – beating Rotherham United and Torquay United over two legs in the inaugural playoffs. They remained in the league's third tier for the next eight seasons – the longest period of stability the club had seen since the 1940s. Under Terry Yorath and then Frank Burrows , the club managed to stay in the Second Division, reach

13090-482: Was dismissed in early March, and under Nick Cusack the club slumped to a 20th placed-finish. Cusack lasted just eight games into the following season, and was sacked after a 1–0 defeat at league debutants Boston United had put the Swans on the bottom of the Football League for the first time in their 91-year history. He was replaced by Brian Flynn . Swansea City avoided relegation to the Football Conference on

13209-422: Was one of consolidation, however in 1948–1949 the Swans stormed their way to winning the division for the second time. Only one point was dropped at home all season as the feat of the 1925 promotion side was emulated, with the side finishing a whole seven points ahead of second placed Reading . Billy McCandless was the manager who led the side to promotion, and in doing so he completed a rare hat-trick of winning

13328-518: Was passed and received Royal Assent, thus making the Welsh language an officially recognised language within Wales. The measure: The measure required public bodies and some private companies to provide services in Welsh. The Welsh government's Minister for Heritage at the time, Alun Ffred Jones , said, "The Welsh language is a source of great pride for the people of Wales, whether they speak it or not, and I am delighted that this measure has now become law. I am very proud to have steered legislation through

13447-416: Was relegated from the Premier League at the end of the 2017–18 season . The club's climb from the fourth division of English football to the top division is chronicled in the 2014 film, Jack to a King – The Swansea Story . The Swansea City Supporters Trust continues to own shares in the club; their involvement was hailed by Supporters Direct in 2012 as "the most high profile example of the involvement of

13566-415: Was sacked and Glyn Davies , a former Swansea player, was appointed in his place. Davies re-signed the 36-year-old Ivor Allchurch from Cardiff City , but despite winning the Welsh Cup , the season saw some of the club's heaviest defeats, and the manager only lasted the season. Relegation to Division Four followed in 1967 and Ivor Allchurch retired. The 1967–68 season saw the record attendance of 32,796 at

13685-487: Was secured courtesy of a 3–0 win over Exeter City at a packed Vetch Field . However, the following week's 1–1 draw at Rotherham United , which confirmed Swansea as Division Three Champions, was overshadowed by the death of supporter Terry Coles, who was trampled to death by a police horse in narrow Millmoor Lane before the game. The team were relegated in May 2001, just 12 months after promotion. Hollins had failed to strengthen

13804-502: Was secured, however, Harry Griffiths died of a heart attack on 25 April 1978 before the home game against Scunthorpe United . A further promotion was achieved next season and the club returned to the Second Division after an absence of 14 years, with Toshack himself coming off the bench to score the winning goal against Chesterfield and thus secure promotion. After a season of consolidation, Swansea City again challenged for promotion and travelled to Preston North End on 2 May 1981 in

13923-542: Was the leading goalscorer in the 2012–13 Eredivisie with 31 goals and was named Dutch Player of the Year. Swansea enjoyed initial success in Europe, beating Spanish side Valencia 3–0 at the Mestalla Stadium in September 2013. On 3 November 2013, Swansea lost the first Welsh derby in the Premier League to Cardiff City following a 1–0 defeat. In February 2014, Laudrup was dismissed from the club, initially thought because of

14042-505: Was then the top division of the 1919–20 Southern Football League , in an expansion of the Football League south of Birmingham . As Cardiff City was long considered a potential entrant for the Second Division due to their FA Cup exploits and Southern League dominance, they were sent directly into the Second Division and Grimsby Town, who finished in last place in the Second Division in 1919–20, were relegated. This league continued in 1921–22 as Football League Third Division South whilst

14161-565: Was with non-league club Cradley Town youth team. Alarmed at developments at the club, Sharpe invoked a contractual clause to cancel the deal and resumed control himself: Cullis was promptly sacked after just six days. Cullis' successor was the Dane, Jan Mølby , a former Liverpool player taking his first steps in management. His appointment inevitably prompted comparison with the Toshack era which began nearly 20 years earlier. Despite relegation in 1996,

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