Bale was born in Cardiff, Wales, to parents Frank, a school caretaker, and Debbie, an operations manager;[13] he attended Eglwys Newydd Primary School at Whitchurch.[14] He is the nephew of former Cardiff City footballer Chris Pike.[15] It was while at this school he first came to the attention of Southampton at age nine, when he was playing in a six-a-side tournament with his first club, Cardiff Civil Service Football Club.[16] Growing up, his football hero was fellow Welshman and Manchester United player Ryan Giggs.[17]
Bale attended Whitchurch High School in Cardiff.[18] He was a keen athlete and played football alongside future Wales rugby captain Sam Warburton,[19] rugby, hockey and excelled at athletics.[20] As a 14-year-old he says that he ran the 100 metre sprint in 11.4 seconds.[17] Because of his superior footballing skill, the school's PE teacher, Gwyn Morris, had to write special rules which restricted Bale to playing one-touch football and not using his left foot.[19] Whilst at Whitchurch, Bale trained at Southampton's satellite academy in Bath, although there was initially some doubt if Southampton would give him a scholarship due to his height.[13]
Despite being only 16 at the time, he helped the school's under-18 side win the Cardiff & Vale Senior Cup. He left school in the summer of 2005 with a Grade A in PE amongst his other GCSE results. In his final year at school, he was awarded the PE department's prize for services to sport. In the presentation, Morris commented:
"Gareth has a fierce determination to succeed and has the character and qualities to achieve his personal goals. He is one of the most unselfish individuals that I have had the pleasure to help educate."[21]
Bale lives in Madrid with his partner Emma Rhys-Jones, his high school sweetheart.[22] Their first child, born at the University Hospital of Wales, Cardiff on 21 October 2012[23] was named Alba Violet.
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