Glamorgan
Sport was an important part of life in Glamorgan, and the county produced several individuals and teams of note. One of the first recorded team sports in Wales was bando, a variant of bandy. The game was very popular in Glamorgan between the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries before losing in popularity to rugby football. The most notable team to carry the name Glamorgan, is Glamorgan County Cricket Club. Although cricket had been established in Glamorgan since the creation of Cardiff Cricket Club in 1819; county team Glamorgan CCC did not form until 1888. The team gained first-class status in 1921, and still play under the name of Glamorgan. In the first hundred years, the only Welshman to captain an England major tour abroad was Tony Lewis, Glamorgan captain 1967–72.
Cricket in Wales
1859 saw the first match between select English and Welsh teams, when the All England XI played a South Wales XXII. The South Wales team were victorious and this led to the first attempt to form a first-class team in Wales. Although county teams were formed after this date, most were short lived; but in 1888 Glamorgan County Cricket Club was formed, which would become the most important first-class team in Wales. Glamorgan entered the Minor Counties Cricket Championship in 1897 and was joined by other county teams from Wales: Carmarthenshire, Monmouthshire and Denbighshire. In 1921 Glamorgan became the first county team to gain first-class status, and was the 17th member of the County Championship.