Wales legend Gareth Bale sits down with John Jones to talk about what he's been up to since retirement

WALES football legend Gareth Bale has opened up on his new life in retirement after hanging up his boots at the age of 33.

- ANDREW REDINGTON

The Cardiff-born star brought the curtain down on a remarkable career in the wake of the 2022 World Cup, retiring as his country's most-capped player with 111 appearances, as well as their all-time record goalscorer, having scored 41 times in the famous red shirt.

He also led Wales to three major tournaments, with the campaign in Qatar their first World Cup for 64 years.

At club level, Bale began his career at Southampton before achieving stardom at Tottenham Hotspur and sealing a then-world record £85m move to Real Madrid.

It was there that he won five Champions Leagues and three La Liga titles, helping him to end his career as one of the most highly-decorated players of the modern era, as he saw out his playing days in MLS with Los Angeles FC.

Less than three years on from calling time on his career, Bale admits that his everyday life now looks quite different indeed. Talking to the Western Mail at the Gareth Bale Festival of Sport at the Celtic Manor on the weekend, the former winger revealed all about how he's spending his time in retirement - here's what he had to say.

Family matters

Since hanging up his boots, Bale has made the most of his newfound spare time, spending as much of it as possible with his family.

He married his childhood sweetheart Emma Rhys-Jones in 2019, having already welcomed three children - Alba, Nava and Axel - before a fourth, Xander, was born in 2021.

With the demands of professional football meaning that Bale often ended up missing out on spending time with his children as they grew up, he has been keen to make up for lost time, creating special memories with them, including trips to Abu Dhabi, Lapland and the United States.

However, in an admission that most parents can relate to, the Wales legend says that his kids keep him "very busy" with "a lot of taxi driving" on the agenda now he is spending the bulk of his time with them.