00:00This iteration of the Wales side was becoming accustomed to ending hoodoos.
00:05In 2016, after 56 years of failure, they qualified for the European Championships for the first time.
00:15And they were rewarded handsomely, with the Euro debutantes doing far more than making up the numbers,
00:23advancing to the semi-finals in a run that captivated the continent.
00:29For decades, Wales' international sporting reputation had been built on rugby.
00:34But now it was the footballers who returned home to a hero's welcome.
00:42Very special. Seems like it's what it means to the whole country.
00:47Obviously, it's nice for us to say a little thank you as well for supporting us
00:50and being there with us for the journey and amazing scenes and one we'll all never forget.
00:57Wales' victories over Slovakia, Russia, Northern Ireland and Belgium proved so profound,
01:04a movie was even made of the accomplishment.
01:08I enjoy it because they're told the truth and you just, you understand, you know,
01:15because we were away for so long.
01:17It's not just the highs, it's the lows.
01:19You know, we try to deal with it and everybody looks at Wales now as if we've been here forever,
01:24you know,
01:24which we certainly haven't.
01:26We've been in some real low periods in our experience together as a team and as a squad, as a
01:32group.
01:33And you see a bit of both, which I thought was really well- welcomed.
01:38Ian Rush might be the greatest goalscorer in the history of Liverpool FC.
01:42And Ryan Giggs might have won more trophies than any other Manchester United player.
01:48But neither managed to replicate that success with the national side.
01:54The talisman to finally drag Wales over the line was Gareth Bale.
02:00It's never a one-man team.
02:03There's 11 men on the pitch for a start.
02:05So, no, for us, it's a squad thing.
02:08We're together stronger.
02:10It's there for a reason.
02:12We don't just say it for no reason.
02:13And we all work hard as one unit.
02:16We defend as one, we attack as one.
02:17And, yeah, when we lose the ball, we all fight back together.
02:22So, yeah, it's obviously people write stories.
02:26They can write what they want.
02:28But we all know that we work very hard on the training pitch every day.
02:32And come a match day, we work even harder.
02:36Bale, along with fellow A-lister Aaron Ramsey,
02:40applied the finishing touches to a group of hard-working,
02:43often unheralded footballers
02:45who understood how their contributions could make history.
02:50I think this whole team,
02:52every single player is just hungry and wanting to play for Wales.
02:58There's no better feeling than representing your country
03:01and especially playing these big games and big moments,
03:04there's literally no better feeling.
03:08This is no longer a surprise if Wales qualify for a major tournament.
03:12There is unlikely to be another generation or two
03:15suffering the heartbreak of watching the world party without them.
03:19Many, many years ago,
03:20a lot of people thought Wales was in England, you know,
03:22but now people know we're our own country.
03:28Never mind rugby.
03:30Wales is a proper football nation.
03:33So this is where, like,
03:33We have to be able to play in the field for the game that we are.
03:33And we're out for the game that we're going to play in it today.
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