52-650: Ashley Williams may refer to: People [ edit ] Ashley Williams (footballer) (born 1984), Wales international footballer Ashley Williams (Liberian footballer) (born 2000), Liberian footballer Ashley Williams (boxer) (born 1991), Welsh boxer Ashley Williams (actress) (born 1978), American actress Ashley Williams (designer) (born 1988/89), British fashion designer Winter Williams (born 1984), American actress, real name Ashley C. Williams Ashley Jaye Williams , multidisciplinary artist Characters [ edit ] Ashley Williams ( Mass Effect ) ,
104-412: A bidding process in which they beat Italy and Turkey for the right to host the 2016 finals. The matches were played in ten stadiums in ten cities: Bordeaux , Lens , Villeneuve-d'Ascq , Décines-Charpieu , Marseille , Nice , Paris , Saint-Denis , Saint-Étienne , and Toulouse . It was the third time that France hosted the finals, after the inaugural tournament in 1960 and the 1984 finals . As
156-470: A 4–0 loss at eventual champions Manchester City , but the club went on to finish the season in 11th place. On 24 September 2011, Williams scored his first ever Premier League goal in a 4–1 loss at Chelsea , after heading in a Mark Gower free kick. In October 2012, Williams signed a new three-year contract with Swansea. The club's second season in the Premier League saw a ninth-placed finish and
208-702: A character in the Mass Effect video game series Ash Williams (Ashley Joanna Williams), a character in the Evil Dead film series [REDACTED] Topics referred to by the same term This disambiguation page lists articles about people with the same name. If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article. Retrieved from " https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Ashley_Williams&oldid=1226897986 " Category : Human name disambiguation pages Hidden categories: Short description
260-522: A first major trophy win in English football for Williams and Swansea, following a 5–0 win over Bradford City in the 2013 League Cup final on 24 February 2013. After captaining the team during the final at Wembley, Williams lifted the trophy with club captain Garry Monk , who had come on as a second-half substitute. In July 2013, after acting as captain for the majority of Swansea's matches during
312-482: A knockout stage including three rounds and the final. Nineteen teams – the top two from each of the nine qualifying groups and the best third-placed team – joined France in the final tournament, who qualified automatically as host; a series of two-legged play-off ties between the remaining third-placed teams in November 2015 decided the last four finalist spots. France was chosen as the host nation on 28 May 2010, after
364-490: A penalty to equalise in a 1–1 draw. Williams scored Everton's goal in their 2–1 Europa League group stage home loss to Lyon on 19 October 2017. He was also booked in that match for pushing Lyon goalkeeper Anthony Lopes into an advertising board, prompting a brawl involving both sets of players and Everton supporters. After the match, Everton manager Ronald Koeman said Williams needed to work on his self-control. On 2 August 2018, Williams joined Stoke City on loan for
416-500: A petrol station, as a waiter at Beefeater , and running a sideshow at Drayton Manor . In December 2010, Williams established the charity WillsWorld with his wife Vanessa, with a view to helping under-privileged children. He is also a patron of Street Football Wales which fights social exclusion, and the Ethan Perkins Trust, which raises funds for research, support and awareness into childhood brain tumours. Williams
468-559: A qualification format involving two group stages, but the member associations did not accept the proposal. In May 2013, Platini confirmed a similar qualifying format would be again discussed during the September 2013 UEFA executive committee meeting in Dubrovnik . Thirteen of the sixteen teams (including hosts France) that qualified for Euro 2012 qualified again for the 2016 final tournament. Among them were England , who became only
520-410: A short-term deal with Championship club Bristol City that would run until "mid-January". His club debut came at previous team Stoke , before making his first home appearance against longtime former employers Swansea . He scored his first goal for Bristol City on 1 November 2019 in a 2–2 draw with Barnsley . In November 2019, he signed an extended deal until the end of the 2019–20 season . He left
572-446: A substitute in a 2–1 win against West Bromwich Albion at The Hawthorns , and three days after that, made his first start for Everton in a 4–0 EFL Cup win at home to Yeovil Town . Williams scored his first Everton goal with an 86th-minute header to secure a 2–1 win over Arsenal on 13 December. On 4 April 2017, he was sent-off at Manchester United for handling a goalbound shot by Luke Shaw , from which Zlatan Ibrahimović scored
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#1732797607675624-481: Is different from Wikidata All article disambiguation pages All disambiguation pages Ashley Williams (footballer) Ashley Errol Williams (born 23 August 1984) is a former professional footballer who played as a centre-back . After being released from West Bromwich Albion as a teenager, Williams played for non-league side Hednesford Town before turning professional at Stockport County in 2003, later becoming their captain. In March 2008, he
676-447: The 2018–19 season. He made his debut nine days later in a 1–1 home draw with Brentford, replacing the injured Bruno Martins Indi after 26 minutes. On 22 August, he was sent off in a 3–0 loss to Wigan Athletic . Williams played 37 times for Stoke during the season, scoring once in a 2–2 draw with Norwich City on 22 April 2019. Williams was released by Everton at the end of the 2018–19 season. On 23 August 2019, Williams signed
728-531: The FIFA World Cup , while Albania and Iceland had never participated in a major tournament. Slovakia meanwhile are making the first tournament as an independent nation, having qualified for three Euro tournaments and eight World Cups under Czechoslovakia . Similarly, both Austria and Ukraine completed successful qualification campaigns for the first time, having only previously qualified as hosts (of 2008 and 2012 respectively). Scotland were
780-457: The Stade de France on 10 June 2016, 20:00 CEST , the opening ceremony of the tournament was held. The ceremony featuring 600 dancers, 150 of which were involved in a traditional French dance before an uptempo version of " La Vie en rose " by French singer Édith Piaf was played. Following this, French DJ David Guetta took to the stage, he performed shortened versions of some of his hits before he
832-515: The second tier of English football for the first time in 24 years, the move was made permanent for a reported £400,000, a club record transfer fee at the time. On 16 September 2008, Williams scored his first Swansea goal in a 1–1 draw against Derby County . The defender impressed during his first season at Championship level, eventually going on to be named Wales Footballer of the Year at an FAW awards dinner in November 2009. Williams also picked up
884-440: The 24 participating teams had to confirm their selection with UEFA by 31 January 2016. The selected team base camps were announced on 2 March 2016: To accommodate the expansion from a 16-team finals tournament to 24 teams, the format was changed from the one used in 2012 with the addition of two extra groups in the group stage, and an extra round in the knockout stage. The six groups (A to F) still contained four teams each, with
936-460: The Clubman of the Year award at the same event. After finishing in eighth position during their first Championship campaign, Swansea improved on their position by one place the following season, missing out on a play-off position by a single point. Williams was part of a defence that conceded only 37 goals during that campaign, and was selected in the 2009–10 Championship PFA Team of the Year at
988-547: The Pot 1 teams were assigned to the first positions of their groups, while next the positions of all other teams were drawn separately from Pot 4 to 2 (for the purposes of determining the match schedules in each group). The draw resulted in the following groups: Ten stadiums were used for the competition. Initially, twelve stadiums were presented for the French bid, chosen on 28 May 2010. These venues were to be whittled down to nine by
1040-480: The absence of a third place play-off . This format generated a total of 51 matches, compared with 31 matches for the previous 16-team tournament, played over a period of 31 days. UEFA 's general secretary Gianni Infantino previously described the format as "not ideal" due to the need for third-ranked teams in the group stage advancing, leading to difficulty in preventing situations where teams might be able to know in advance what results they needed to progress out of
1092-516: The armband to Williams on account of his experience over the younger Ramsey. The decision was criticised by Raymond Verheijen , the assistant to Coleman's predecessor, Gary Speed . On 31 May 2016, Williams was named in Coleman's 23-man squad for UEFA Euro 2016 , Wales' first major tournament for more than half a century. On 1 July in Lille , Williams headed the equalising goal, against Belgium in
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#17327976076751144-553: The best third-placed team (with the results against the sixth-placed team discarded) qualify directly for the final tournament. The remaining eight third-placed teams contested two-legged play-offs to determine the last four qualifiers. In March 2012, Gianni Infantino , the UEFA general secretary at the time, stated that UEFA would review the qualification competition to ensure that it was not "boring". In September 2011, during UEFA's first full strategy meeting, Michel Platini proposed
1196-465: The club at the end of the season on the expiration of his contract. On 26 January 2021, Williams announced his retirement from professional football, aged 36. Williams qualifies for the Wales national team through his maternal grandfather Bill Rowlands from Gelli , Rhondda . He made his international debut on 26 March 2008, two days before securing his move to Swansea City. In the match, he played
1248-599: The club when he made his international debut for Wales. In November 2007, Williams won both the inaugural North-West League Two Player of the Year Award and the North-West Player of the Year Award. In March 2008, Williams signed for Swansea City on loan until the end of the 2007–08 season , with a view to a permanent transfer. After helping Swansea win the League One title and, with it, promotion to
1300-583: The country for the first time on 14 November in a 3–0 friendly win over Scotland at the Cardiff City Stadium . On 11 October 2010, he scored his first international goal in a 5–1 friendly win over Luxembourg in Parc y Scarlets , finishing a header from debutant Steve Morison . In October 2012, Williams was named captain of Wales by manager Chris Coleman , replacing Aaron Ramsey . Coleman, who by that point had not won in his four matches, awarded
1352-519: The end of May 2011, but it was suggested in June 2011 that eleven venues might be used. The French Football Federation had to decide which nine would be selected. The choice for the first seven was undisputed – the national Stade de France , four newly constructed ones in Lille Metropole ( Villeneuve-d'Ascq ), Décines-Charpieu ( Lyon Metropolis ), Nice and Bordeaux , and two stadiums in
1404-586: The end of the season. The 2010–11 season saw Swansea and Williams gain promotion to the Premier League via a play-off final win at Wembley Stadium . Williams was named in the Championship PFA Team of the Year for the second consecutive season. The season also saw him equal and surpass a club record of 106 consecutive matches, previously jointly held by Andy Legg and Gilbert Beech . Swansea's first Premier League season began with
1456-504: The final tournament after long absences were Belgium for the first time since co-hosting Euro 2000 , and Hungary for the first time in 44 years, having last appeared at Euro 1972 , and 30 years since appearing in a major tournament, their previous one being the 1986 FIFA World Cup . Four teams secured their first qualification to a UEFA European Championship final tournament: Albania , Iceland , Northern Ireland , and Wales . Northern Ireland and Wales had each previously competed in
1508-509: The finals. The Dutch team failed to qualify for the first time since Euro 1984 (also held in France), missing out on their first major tournament since the 2002 FIFA World Cup and only 16 months after having finished third at the 2014 FIFA World Cup . Denmark did not appear at the Euro finals for the first time since 2008 , after losing in the play-off round against Sweden . As of 2024, this
1560-729: The first matches being played in September 2014. 53 teams competed for 23 places in the final tournament to join France , who automatically qualified as hosts. Gibraltar competed in a European Championship qualifying for the first time since their affiliation to UEFA in 2013. The seeding pots were formed on the basis of the UEFA national team coefficients , with the Euro 2012 champions Spain and hosts France automatically top seeded. The 53 national sides were drawn into eight groups of six teams and one group of five teams. The group winners, runners-up, and
1612-476: The first time, following a 1–0 victory after extra time over the host team, France , in the final played at the Stade de France . For the first time, the European Championship final tournament was contested by 24 teams, having been expanded from the 16-team format used since 1996 . Under the new format, the finalists contested a group stage consisting of six groups of four teams, followed by
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1664-528: The full 90 minutes for John Toshack 's men in their 2–0 friendly away win in Luxembourg , making an early error through a poor backpass to goalkeeper Lewis Price , but recovered possession in time. On 1 April 2009, Williams scored an own goal in a 2–0 loss to Germany in qualification for the 2010 FIFA World Cup , deflecting Mario Gómez 's cross at the Millennium Stadium . He captained
1716-595: The group; this led to the risk of a lack of suspense for fans, or even the prospect of mutually beneficial collusion between teams. Each national team had to submit a squad of 23 players, three of whom had to be goalkeepers, at least ten days before the opening match of the tournament. If a player became injured or ill severely enough to prevent his participation in the tournament before his team's first match, he could be replaced by another player. On 15 December 2015, UEFA named eighteen referees for Euro 2016. The full referee teams were announced on 1 March 2016. England
1768-490: The hosts France being automatically placed in position A1. The remaining teams were seeded into four pots of five (Pot 1) or six teams (Pots 2, 3, and 4). As the title holders, Spain were seeded in Pot 1, while the other 22 teams were seeded according to the UEFA national team coefficients updated after the completion of the qualifying group stage (excluding the play-offs), which were released by UEFA on 14 October 2015. Teams were drawn consecutively into Group A to F. First,
1820-590: The only team from the British Isles not to qualify for the finals, and it also marked the first time that both Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland qualified for the same major tournament finals. Greece , champions in 2004, finished bottom in their group and failed to qualify for the first time since 2000. Two other previous champions, the Netherlands (1988) and Denmark (1992), missed out on
1872-512: The opening game of the tournament. UEFA announced the tournament schedule on 25 April 2014, which was confirmed on 12 December 2015, after the final draw. Group winners, runners-up, and the best four third-placed teams advanced to the Round of 16 . All times are local, CEST ( UTC+2 ). If two or more teams were equal on points on completion of the group matches, the following tie-breaking criteria were applied: In
1924-607: The previous two seasons, Williams was permanently handed the club captaincy after Monk stepped down from the role. On 4 July 2014, Williams signed a new four-year contract with Swansea. On 19 April 2015, he was selected in the Team of the Decade at the Football League Awards . On 10 August 2016, Williams joined Everton on a three-year contract for a £12 million transfer fee. He made his debut ten days later as
1976-502: The quarter-finals as Wales eventually won 3–1 to progress to the semi-finals for the first time in their international football history. In the semi-final, Wales lost 2–0 to Portugal . Williams earned 86 caps for Wales and scored two goals with his last cap coming in June 2019 in a 1–0 away loss to Hungary . Williams is of Jamaican descent through his father and of Welsh descent through his mother. In his time at Hednesford Town, Williams supported himself with various jobs including at
2028-616: The reserve cities of Toulouse and Saint-Étienne joined the list of hosts. Then, in December 2011, Nancy announced its withdrawal from the tournament, after plans for the stadium's renovation were cancelled, finalising the list of host venues at ten. Two other possible options, the Stade de la Beaujoire in Nantes and the Stade de la Mosson in Montpellier (venues which were used for the 1998 World Cup ) were not chosen. The final list
2080-527: The sixth team to record a flawless qualifying campaign (10 wins in 10 matches), defending European champions Spain , and world champions Germany , who qualified for their 12th straight European Championship finals. Romania , Turkey , Austria , and Switzerland all returned after missing out in 2012, with the Austrians qualifying for just their second final Euro tournament, after having co-hosted Euro 2008 and first time through qualifying. Returning to
2132-522: The team at Euro 2016 , where Wales reached the semi-finals. Born in Wolverhampton , West Midlands , Williams began his career at West Bromwich Albion as a youth player but was released by the club at age 16. He went on to play for non-league Hednesford Town . In late 2003 he left to join Division Two side Stockport County Williams later became captain of Stockport and was still at
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2184-441: The top two from each group still going through to the knockout stage. In the new format, however, the four best third-ranked sides also progressed, leaving 16 teams going into the new round of 16 knockout stage (ahead of the usual quarter-finals, semi-finals and final), and only eight teams going out after the group stage. The format was the same as the one which was applied to the 1986 , 1990 , and 1994 FIFA World Cups , except for
2236-410: The two largest cities, Paris and Marseille . After Strasbourg opted out for financial reasons following relegation, two more venues were selected to be Lens and Nancy , leaving Toulouse and Saint-Étienne as reserve options. In June 2011, the number of host venues was increased to eleven due to the new tournament format featuring 24 teams, instead of the previous 16. The decision meant that
2288-615: The winners, Portugal earned the right to compete at the 2017 FIFA Confederations Cup in Russia . Four bids came before the deadline on 9 March 2009. France, Italy and Turkey put in single bids while Norway and Sweden put in a joint bid. Norway and Sweden eventually withdrew their bid in December 2009. The host was selected on 28 May 2010. The qualifying draw took place at the Palais des Congrès Acropolis in Nice , on 23 February 2014, with
2340-491: Was a Liverpool fan as a child and his favourite player was John Barnes . He also likes basketball and supports the Miami Heat . Source: Wales score listed first, score column indicates score after each Williams goal. Swansea City Individual UEFA Euro 2016 The 2016 UEFA European Football Championship , commonly referred to as UEFA Euro 2016 (stylised as UEFA EURO 2016 ) or simply Euro 2016 ,
2392-795: Was a regular in his first season at Goodison Park but eventually fell out of favour and he spent the 2018–19 season on loan at Stoke City . Upon his release by Everton, Williams signed a short-term deal with Bristol City in August 2019 which was extended in November of that year. He left the club at the end of the 2019–20 season and announced his retirement in January 2021 at the age of 36. Born in England, Williams qualified to play for Wales through his maternal grandfather. He made his debut for them in March 2008 and earned 86 caps, scoring twice. He captained
2444-512: Was confirmed by the UEFA Executive Committee on 25 January 2013. Capacity figures are those for matches at UEFA Euro 2016 and are not necessarily the total capacity that the venues are capable of holding. Each team had a "team base camp" for its stay between the matches. The teams trained and resided in these locations throughout the tournament, travelling to games staged away from their bases. From an initial list of 66 bases,
2496-623: Was joined on stage by Swedish singer Zara Larsson to perform the official song of the tournament " This One's for You ". The ceremony ended with a fly over from the Patrouille Acrobatique de France of the French Air Force , trailing the French blue, white, and red. The ceremony also featured a tribute to the victims of the November 2015 Paris attacks . Following the ceremony, the hosts France beat Romania 2–1 in
2548-538: Was loaned to Swansea City , and after helping them win the League One title, signed for a then club record £400,000. He amassed 352 appearances for the Swans, scoring 14 goals. He aided them in their promotion to the Premier League and their victory in the 2013 Football League Cup Final . In August 2016, he signed a three-year contract with fellow Premier League side Everton for a fee of £12 million. Williams
2600-460: Was the 15th UEFA European Championship , the quadrennial international men's football championship of Europe organised by UEFA . It was held in France from 10 June to 10 July 2016. Spain were the two-time defending champions, having won the 2008 and 2012 tournaments, but were eliminated in the round of 16 by Italy , whom they had beaten in the 2012 final . Portugal won the tournament for
2652-693: Was the last time that Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland qualified for either the World Cup or European Championship finals, the only time that Iceland qualified, as well as the last time that Denmark, the Netherlands and Scotland failed to qualify. The draw for the finals took place at the Palais des Congrès de la Porte Maillot in Paris on 12 December 2015, 18:00 CET . The 24 qualified teams were drawn into six groups of four teams, with
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#17327976076752704-407: Was the only country to have two referees in the tournament. Hungarian referee Viktor Kassai was chosen to officiate the opener between France and Romania. English referee Mark Clattenburg was chosen to officiate the final between Portugal and France. Two match officials, who serve only as fourth officials, and two reserve assistant referees were also named: An hour before the first match at
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