by Sam Hill
“Once you’ve been on one of these Wales away trips and seen the national team in a foreign country, you get the bug, you want more of it. It’s like a 48-hour party, wearing red and you’re having a drink and a sing song and people are so welcoming, everything is fantastic, except usually the 90 minutes of football!”
Those are the words of Wales superfan Tim Hartley, a man who has followed his country across the globe on 101 away trips.
The co-founder of Gôl Cymru explains what makes following Cymru so special, how Wales away has evolved and what keeps him coming back.
Reaching that milestone in Copenhagen, Hartley has spent 27 years travelling abroad to support his beloved country. While some might expect the trips to become repetitive, he insists there is much more to experience than the football.
“The good thing about visiting these countries is the cultural exchange you get there. I wouldn’t have gone to some of these countries and had the conversations if it wasn’t for Wales Away. Seeing things, talking to people, broadening your mind, being open to different ideas and cultures, trying different foods and drinks is all part of what makes it so special.”
Five decades of fandom
Hartley’s interest in the national team dates back to 1976, when Wales faced Yugoslavia in the European Championship quarter-finals, ultimately losing 3-1 on aggregate at Ninian Park.
However, he would have to wait until 1999 for his first away trip, travelling to Switzerland to watch Wales at the Grasshopper Stadium in Zurich.
That experience laid the foundations for a passion that would only continue to grow, heightened during Wales’ memorable run to the semi-finals of Euro 2016 in France.
For Hartley, that tournament brought the memories of thousands of Wales fans gathering across French cities to follow their team as they embarked on a wave that would transcend the nation into new heights and spotlight.
“We didn’t care what we were called in 2016, because Wales were doing the business on the pitch. There were thousands of us on the streets of Bordeaux, Lens, Lille, Paris.
“It was just great that we had an identity which goes beyond the game of football and in a sense, we were representatives of Wales as a country, a small nation taking its first tentative steps on the international stage.”
That sense of identity which goes beyond the game of football is what he believes makes following Wales so special.
“You’re talking to people from Caernarfon, Rhyl, Newport, Swansea, you forget your club sides, you forget the antagonism, you’re having a great time. The Welsh language is accepted as normal, and people usually behave themselves, and I think the local people really get a shock by seeing football fans have a nice time without hassling them.”
Friendships made
Beyond the football, Hartley believes the friendships formed through Wales away are a major part of what the trips are all about.
Before the days of WhatsApp groups, he recalled on how supporters relied on email exchanges to arrange journeys and meet up abroad.
“Back in the early days, we didn’t have chat groups, there was an email exchange that went around.”
One special supporter Tim remembered was a man named Roland, who lived in Beijing and would go to the Wales matches.
“I only ever met this guy on Wales away trips.”
Nowadays, Tim finds travelling with his family and friends much more straightforward through a group chat and regular banter on who has the responsibility of booking tickets, buses and accommodation for each match.
He also touched upon his son, Rhys, who lives in Serbia, and how his experience of travelling back home showed the generosity of a fellow Wales supporter.
“My son needed to get back to Luton Airport, as he lives away and a friend of a friend took him there after the match against Denmark. Incredible really, it is all about making friends all over the place, half of these people I know by sight and not by name.”
The bigger picture
For Hartley, the development of Wales away culture has also created opportunities to give something back.
“What we’ve seen since 2016 is the coming of age of Wales football fan culture, you’ve got Ryan March of Alternative Wales doing his magazines, which talk about fashion, music, culture, and the Gôl Cymru supporters’ charity has been going since 2002.
An encounter with a local street child in Baku inspired both Hartley and co-founder Neil Dymock to support disadvantaged young people in countries visited by the Welsh national team.
Hartley is of the firm belief that travelling supporters like the ‘Red Wall’ can leave a positive legacy wherever they go.
“Every time Wales play a game home or away, we’re there supporting a children’s charity. At the most recent U21s game in Caernarfon, we took 12 children out for a meal and gave them free tickets to the game.”
Alongside charity work, his involvement in cultural events through Gŵyl Wal Goch reflects a wider belief in football’s ability to bring people together.
“Football is more than 22 men or women on the pitch, it is about what it can do. Let’s look at mental health, let’s look at LGBT issues, you can do all that through football.”
101 trips and counting
Despite his remarkable record of over a century of away trips, Hartley’s appetite for travelling remains hungrier than ever.
“I’m a bit of a football obsessive, to be honest with you, I’ve been to three African Cup of Nations, three World Cups, three European Championships, I’ve even watched a match in North Korea!”
His travels have taken him far beyond Europe, including trips to the USA to watch Wales face Mexico and an opportunity to travel to Nanning for the China Cup in 2018.
However, there is one destination he still hopes Wales will take him someday.
“If you’re asking me where I would really like to go with Wales away, it would have to be the Faroe Islands, wouldn’t that be something. Catching a boat out to the Faroe Islands, seeing that magic ground they’ve got, fingers crossed for the next draw!”
Credit: Fernando Strabuli/Unsplash
For now, Hartley will have to settle for Oslo as Craig Bellamy’s side travel to face Norway on 14 November.
While stopping a certain Erling Haaland will be on the agenda for 90 minutes of football, what is for sure is that the next trip will provide another opportunity to experience a different culture, meet new people and continue doing what he loves.
After 101 away trips and counting, the attraction remains stronger than ever. While the football may not always live up to expectations, the friendships and memories made along the way continue to make every journey worthwhile.