 | |
| Founded | 2020 |
|---|---|
| Country |  Wales |
| Divisions | 2 |
| Number of teams | 64 |
| Level on pyramid | 3 |
| Promotion to | |
| Relegation to | Central Wales Football League North East Wales Football League North Wales Coast East Football League North Wales Coast West Football League Gwent Premier League South Wales Premier League West Wales Premier League |
| Domestic cup(s) | Ardal North Cup Ardal South Cup |
| Current champions | Penrhyncoch (NE) Flint Mountain (NW) Trethomas Bluebirds (SE) Penrhiwceiber Rangers (SW) |
The Ardal Leagues[1] are a football league in Wales. The word "ardal" translates as "district" in English, with Wales split into four regions at this level. They have clubs with amateur/semi-professional status and sit at the third level of the Welsh football league system. The first year of their operation would have been 2020–21 but the 2020–21 Ardal North East season, 2020–21 Ardal North West season, 2020–21 Ardal South East season and 2020–21 Ardal South West season were all cancelled.[2] The inaugural season was moved to 2021–22. The creation of the leagues mark the first time the Football Association of Wales owns and is administering tier 3 of the Welsh league system. These changes follow from a review of the Welsh football pyramid.[3] To be eligible clubs need to meet the criteria for FAW tier 3 certification.
The league is split into two leagues, covering North and South Wales. Both Northern and Southern leagues have two regionally-based sections of sixteen clubs each:
- Ardal Northern
- Ardal North East (2024–25 Ardal NE season)
- Ardal North West (2024–25 Ardal NW season)
- Ardal Southern
- Ardal South East (2024–25 Ardal SE season)
- Ardal South West (2024–25 Ardal SW season)
The winners of each league are promoted to either the Cymru North or the Cymru South as long as they meet the FAW's tier 2 certification criteria. Subject to also meeting these criteria, the four runners-up clubs enter play-off matches with two of the clubs also gaining promotion[4] (one from the north and one from the south).
The Ardal Leagues structure replaced the former tier 3 leagues: Welsh Football League Division One, Mid Wales Football League Division One, Welsh Alliance League Division One and the Welsh National League Premier Division, leagues based in South Wales, Mid Wales, North West Wales and North East Wales respectively.
Relegation from the Ardal Leagues is to six local tier 4 leagues, with three clubs relegated from each of the tier 3 leagues at the end of the season. The tier 4 leagues are run by each of the Area Associations of Welsh football, the West Wales Football Association, the South Wales Football Association, the Gwent County Football Association, the Central Wales Football Association, the North East Wales Football Association and the North Wales Coast Football Association.
- ^ "ARDAL LEAGUES COMPLETE DOMESTIC PYRAMID RESTRUCTURE". Football Association of Wales. 28 July 2020. Archived from the original on 28 July 2020. Retrieved 28 July 2020.
- ^ Jones, Jordan (4 February 2021). "Football season cancelled for many in Wales after FAW meeting". Y Clwb Pêl-Droed. Archived from the original on 14 April 2021. Retrieved 14 April 2021.
- ^ "The Pyramid Review". Football Association of Wales. Archived from the original on 28 March 2019. Retrieved 24 May 2019.
- ^ Llyr, Owain. "Welsh football: Leagues restructure confirmed by FAW". BBC Sport. Archived from the original on 9 November 2020. Retrieved 30 July 2020.