Wrexham’s promotion: ‘Feelgood fairy tale’ or ‘brand-building exercise that sticks in the craw’? Our writers debate
Wrexham clinched the National League title at the weekend, securing their promotion to the English Football League two years after being bought by Hollywood actors Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney.
But is the story, which has been played out in a reality TV series as well as on the pitches of England and Wales, an uplifting tale about reinvigorating a downtrodden community or one of rich owners flexing their fame and fortune to trample all over other struggling sides?
Two writers – AFC Wimbledon die-hard and City PM editor Andy Silvester and Newport County devotee and sports communications consultant Matthew Fletcher-Jones – have their say.
Andy Silvester: Wrexham promotion story leaves me cold
Congratulations to Wrexham. Their title victory at the weekend was truly a heart-warming story of what can be achieved by blowing every other club in your league out the water financially, losing £3m in a year whilst you’re at it.
Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney seem perfectly charming and one can’t doubt their commitment – for now – but this apparently uplifting tale of a scrappy underdog rising to new heights leaves me utterly cold.
Perhaps it’s jealousy. Wrexham play winning, attractive football, which on both counts is something my club AFC Wimbledon have struggled to achieve for a number of years.
But talking to fans of other clubs in the lower reaches of the football league, where Wrexham will ply their trade next year, and the truth is that they won’t be missed if, as expected, they whistle through League Two, buying players from the divisions above as they go.
For all the shine of Reynolds and McElhenney, this is the same old story: a story we’ve seen to varying degrees at Salford City, or Fleetwood Town, or higher up the chain at Manchester City and Newcastle United. Money remains the easiest way to guarantee success on the pitch, and it’s boring.
What makes Wrexham different is that Reynolds and McElhenney have turned that story into a reality TV show, an absurd two-game series against Manchester United and Chelsea in San Diego this summer, and a social media trend.
It’s the ‘owned by Wryan and Wrob’ on the club’s Twitter biography. It’s the “we’ve got to get out of this f***ing league” tweets when volunteers at Aldershot were trying to clear up a pitch that hasn’t been invested in, because they’re not owned by Deadpool and the guy from Always Sunny.
It just… sticks in the craw.
I know what you’re saying: so far, so bitter. Yes, they did buy our star striker Ollie Palmer. Yes, that signing probably ensured we got relegated last year. Wrexham are entitled to enjoy their success but it’s the blind positivity that galls.
The BBC Sport Twitter account even tweeted the utterly banal “owners who really care” – complete with a love heart – at the weekend, as if the admin was hoping to get a like from the Hollywood stars themselves.
If someone at W1A could explain to me what the difference is between the loss-making spending of Reynolds and McElhenney and that of Todd Boehly at Chelsea I’d be thrilled to know.
In truth, the issue is that Wrexham’s rise is the perfect illustration of what modern football is: a brand-building exercise. It’s hard to dislike Hollywood’s finest Welsh football owners. Modern football, however, is a lot easier to rail against.
I only hope that when the going gets tough, Reynolds and McElhenney realise they’re playing with a community club that was there before them, and needs to be there after them.
Matthew Fletcher-Jones: Even Newport fans are delighted for Wrexham
They’ve been bankrolled by North American actor owners who knew little about football; all for a subscription channel TV show. Many fellow Newport County fans are annoyed by our “Hollywood FC” rivals. And Ryan Reynolds is too likeable and handsome to be true. Yet, I’m delighted for Wrexham.
Their return to the English Football League should be a feelgood fairy tale but “buying” promotion has angered some football fans. Wrexham follow both Crawley Town and Salford “Class of 92” City in getting out of the National League thanks to the big bucks. Neither club got backs up quite like Wrexham have.
The North Walians though, are in every way a proper football club. Wrexham is the world’s third oldest, were previously in the League for 90 years, and fans raised the money to keep them alive just over a decade ago. They’ve survived tough times. Not unlike my local club, AFC Wimbledon.
From a Welsh perspective, it’s great to have four EFL clubs for the first time since 1988. That season Newport were relegated from the fourth tier and would go out of business thanks to an American owner who failed the club in every way.
Reynolds and Rob McElhenney, on the other hand, haven’t put a foot wrong. The duo take advice, engage with fans and the community, and try not to make it all about them. Even if the media does.
That attention they bring, however, has showcased football beyond the Premier League. Soccer tourists now change trains at Crewe rather than heading to Manchester and Liverpool, and there are National League ads on BT Sport during Champions League matches. Next season, expect the paltry number of League Two games on Sky Sports to suddenly increase.
So, Llongyfarchiadau Wrecsam. See you at Rodney (Dave) Parade next season. Feel free to bring along any Hollywood mates who fancy a Welsh club of their own.