Cardiff is the capital and biggest city of Wales, as well as the United Kingdom’s tenth largest city. The city serves as the country’s main economic hub, as well as the home of most of the country’s cultural and sports institutions, as well as the Welsh national media and the National Assembly for Wales. The population of the unitary authority area was predicted to be 346,100 in mid-2011, whereas the population of the Larger Urban Zone was expected to be 861,400 in 2009. With a population estimate of about 1,100,000 people in mid-2011, the Cardiff metropolitan region accounts for more than a third of Wales’ total population. With 18.3 million visitors in 2010, Cardiff is a big tourist attraction and the most popular visiting destination in Wales. Cardiff was listed sixth in the world among alternative tourism destinations by National Geographic in 2011.
Cardiff is the county town of Glamorgan, a historic county in Wales (and later South Glamorgan). Cardiff is a member of the Eurocities network of Europe’s major cities. The Cardiff Urban Area, which includes the towns of Dinas Powys and Penarth, is somewhat bigger than the county line. Until the early nineteenth century, it was a little town, but its importance as a significant port for the transportation of coal after the development of industry in the area led to its growth into a large metropolis.
In 1905, Cardiff was designated as a city, and in 1955, it was named the capital of Wales. Cardiff has seen tremendous transformation during the 1980s. The Senedd building, which houses the Welsh Assembly and the Wales Millennium Centre arts complex, is part of a new waterfront area in Cardiff Bay. Current initiatives include the Cardiff International Sports Village, a BBC drama village, and a new commercial district in the city center, as well as the continuing of the reconstruction of the Cardiff Bay and city centre regions.
The Millennium Stadium (home of the Wales national rugby union team), SWALEC Stadium (home of Glamorgan County Cricket Club), Cardiff City Stadium (home of Cardiff City football team), Cardiff International Sports Stadium (home of Cardiff Amateur Athletic Club), and Cardiff Arms Park are among the city’s sporting venues (the home ofCardiff Blues and Cardiff RFC rugby union teams). Due to its importance in hosting important international athletic events, the city has been named European City of Sport twice: first in 2009 and again in 2014. During the 2012 Summer Olympics, the Millennium Stadium held 11 football matches, including the opening ceremony and the men’s bronze medal match.