​The new Cymru Premier season kicks off this evening [John Smith/FAW]The Cymru Premier returns tonight with a fresh lick of paint and plenty of narratives to sink our teeth into.Wales’ top tier has been revamped for its 35th edition, expanding to 16 teams and predominantly switching to Friday night games.The Football Association of Wales (FAW) hope that the wide-reaching changes will grow the league’s popularity and, in turn, improve its standard.Whether those changes have the desired impact remains to be seen, but excitement is high amongst supporters.BBC Sport Wales have taken a look at the things you should look out for as Welsh football’s top flight enters a new era.Will The New Saints’ dominance continue?Even in this new era, one thing remains the same – The New Saints head into the season as clear favourites to lift the Cymru Premier title.It will be tough to knock TNS, Welsh football’s most dominant side, off their perch after five straight league title victories.External expectations of TNS are matched by those within the club, where nothing less than a 19th league title will be deemed a success.Manager Craig Harrison – who has won the division in each of his 10 seasons at Park Hall – has made several additions to his full-time playing squad.Dynel Simeu once joined Southampton from Chelsea for £1.5million, and arrives to reinforce a defence that conceded just 25 goals last term.Former Aston Villa youngster Brad Young is back at TNS, two years after his move to Saudi Arabia and the legal issues that followed.However, the new signings did not yield a lucrative European run. Harrison’s side suffered a body blow on Thursday night when they crashed out of the UEFA Conference League qualifiers, beaten by Flora Tallinn on penalties.Fresh format, fresh faces – meet the Cymru Premier new boysNew investment impact – who can challenge TNS?TNS are not the only Welsh club with financial backing. While they remain the best-funded, others are increasingly looking to the Cymru Premier as an investment opportunity.Penybont, runners-up in 2024-25, are one of the clubs operating under a hybrid model, allowing some key players to train more regularly.The Bridgend-based side landed “significant new investment” this summer and have recruited players from professional clubs, including ex-Newport County defender Liam Shephard.It was Connah’s Quah Nomads who finished closest to TNS last season, albeit 22 points adrift of the perennial champions in second place. John Disney’s side will desire to cut that gap this year, although the task has been made harder with key players departing, most notably Rhys Hughes, who has joined TNS.The Nomads are ambitious. In November 2025, they announced potential plans to build a new 4,000-seater stadium capable of hosting international fixtures.Haverfordwest also gained a new backer this year, with American businessman Andreas Johansson joining Rob Edwards as co-owner of the Bluebirds in February.Edwards completed a takeover of f