World Cup: Jubilant Wales fans jump with joy as they celebrate their first World Cup goal in 60 YEARS
WALES fans got the party started as they watched their side score their first World Cup goal since 1958.
Beer flew in the air and supporters ripped their shirts off as Welsh wizard Gareth Bale slotted home an 82nd-minute penalty.
Huw EvansWales fans celebrate Gareth Bale’s equaliser in their opening World Cup clash[/caption]
AthenaSupporters packed into a fan zone in Swansea to watch the match[/caption]
WNSA supporter ripped off his shirt to celebrate the equalising goal[/caption]
And fans packed into Elevens, the Cardiff bar owned by Bale, to watch the former Spurs and Real Madrid forward level the scores with just under 10 minutes of normal time remaining.
There were raucous scenes too at Cardiff’s Vale Sports Arena, with at least one lad tearing off his Wales top to celebrate the goal.
Supporters chugged beer in a fan zone set up in Swansea to watch the clash with the USA, Wales’ first game at a World Cup finals in more than 60 years.
While fans in Wrexham were filmed going wild as the equaliser went in.
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The game had been a long time coming, but the fairytale appeared to wilt in the desert heat at Qatar‘s Ahmad bin Ali Stadium when Timothy Weah – son of legendary former footballer George Weah – gave the Yanks a deserved lead in the 36th.
Weah got on the end of a sublime Christian Pulisic pass to jab the ball past Wayne Hennessey.
But with 6’5” giant Kieffer Moore brought on at halftime for Dan James, the game slowly turned, and when Walker Zimmerman clumsily tripped Bale in the box, the stage was set for the Welsh dragon to roar again.
Thousands of Welsh supporters made the journey to Qatar for the momentous occasion, and by all accounts have enjoyed themselves.
Ahead of Monday’s clash, it was reported that Wales fans drank a Qatar bar dry.
Alcohol has been a controversial topic at this winter’s World Cup, with authorities in the majority-Muslim country reversing on a deal with Budweiser to allow beer to be sold in stadiums just days before the tournament started.
But that hasn’t stopped Wales fans from boozing, with WalesOnline reporting that they held an eight-hour party at Doha’s InterContinental Hotel.
More than 1,600 Welsh supporters reportedly started arriving before 11am local time, at least 11 hours before kickoff.
Despite pints costing the equivalent of £10.45, the crowd reportedly emptied the bar of draught beer with six hours still to go, with supporters left to drink bottles instead.
Legendary Welsh singer Dafydd Iwan stole the show when he turned up at the hotel to lead a rousing rendition of his most famous song Yma o Hyd.
The song, which has been selected as Wales’ official anthem for this year’s World Cup, has become an iconic part of Rob Page’s side’s successes, after Iwan himself sang it on the pitch ahead of two crucial playoff games against Austria and Ukraine earlier this year.
Yma o Hyd, originally released in 1983, translates to “Still Here”, and has since been adopted by several sports clubs as well as pro-Welsh independence groups.
Brass band The Barry Horns also performed for fans inside the hotel before they set off for Al Rayyan’s Ahmad Bin Ali Stadium, some 13 miles away.
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The draw leaves Wales second in Group B behind England, who smashed Iran 6-2 earlier on Monday thanks to a brace from Bukayo Saka as well as goals for Jude Bellingham, Raheem Sterling, Marcus Rashford, and Jack Grealish.
Wales face Iran on Friday at 10am, before a hotly-anticipated clash with Gareth Southgate‘s men next Tuesday at 7pm.
WNSThere were emotional scenes as Wales played their first World Cup game since 1958[/caption]
Huw EvansSupporters at Elevens, a Cardiff bar owned by Gareth Bale[/caption]
AthenaMost fans weren’t born the last time Wales reached a World Cup finals[/caption]
WNSGareth Bale’s goal sparked huge celebrations[/caption]
AlamyBale scored from the penalty spot after Timothy Weah had given the US the lead[/caption]
