Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney Share Massive Wrexham Expansion Plans

It's Season 3 of FX's Emmy-winning sports docuseries, Welcome to Wrexham, and co-owners Ryan Reynolds (Deadpool) and Rob McElhenney (It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia) have nothing to prove, as far as their passion for this team is concerned. Seasons 1 and 2 established this Hollywood duo's intentions to uplift and highlight the Welsh association football team, Wrexham AFC, and their dedicated fanbase. Now, it's about pushing further, reaching their goals, setting new ones, and expanding.
Where the first two seasons garnered global attention for this underdog team looking to rise in the ranks and reach League Two, Season 3 still has a ways to go for the players and their community of die-hard supporters. Having staked a claim in the EFL, the pressure is high and new challenges await Wrexham AFC, as well as an unprecedented journey into the locker rooms and onto the pitch. Likewise, Wrexham AFC's Women's Team are fresh off an undefeated season and will be taking on the Adran Premier League.
During this interview, Reynolds and McElhenney discuss the impact the series has had all over the world, and why this underdog tale resonates with so many across the globe. The duo also talk about their massive plans for The Racecourse Ground, the challenges they've met in expanding, getting Wrexham AFC to the Premier League and "staying sustainable," and updates for this summer's North American tour. Check out the full interview in the video above or the transcript below for this and tons more.
#RyanReynolds #RobMcElhenney #Wrexham
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[@cjc2611]

I LOVE Rob making the point about ethically bringing the club to the Premier League sustainably. That means no oil money. That holistic approach is going to pay dividends surely.

[@Somethingwittyxs4ku]

Sustainable,in the context he spoke of, I think has to do more with relegation rather than oil money.

[@mkfge7]

Absolutely amazing what these guys have done. I’m Born and raised in London and I’m looking for Wrexham scores weekly. I truly look forward to their journey.

[@brent4723]

45,000 seats! North Wales will have its own Lambeau Field. And these two are able to make it happen.

[@CityPlannerPlaysChair]

The comparison is great. Lambeau is 81,441 (75% of GB). 45000 would fit over the entire town of Wrexham.

[@andrewthomas802]

@@CityPlannerPlaysChair Yes but the catchment area of a 20 mile radius is about 150,000 then add in the whole of North and mid Wales and you have a potential Wrexham AFC catchment area of at least 300,000 people. Plus a growing international Wrexham AFC visitor fan base of about 3,000 at each game.

[@zh2184]

I know Disney+/FX has these guys on a publicity tour for the upcoming season, but man I have rarely seen two people who are in more need of sleep than Rob & Ryan.

[@zugzug6773]

Well, Ryan has 4 kids including a brand new one. They both have business ventures and successful acting careers. Flying all over the world and trying to give bits of themselves to everything must be exhausting at times.

[@Red_Snappa]

@@zugzug6773 I honestly don't know where they get the drive to have all these different irons in the fire, I really don't. As well as their day jobs, they've got the Wrexham thing, the F1 thing, the Gin, Mint Mobile, the new Mexico club investment....& god knows what else probably! No wonder they both look f***ed!

[@andrewthomas802]

Nicely said Ryan & Rob. God bless you both for the time and effort you have put into Wrexham AFC and it's great area & people. You deserve so much success. Much appreciated from a Wrexham fan since 1974, born and bred in this town for at least 3 generations.

[@sydshrimp]

As a Southend supporter I'm so glad about what is happening to Wrexham thanks to these guys as God knows this club deserves it after 15 years in the National League. Wouldn't be surprised if you make the League 1 play offs.

[@brianwooton1992]

You can see a smile crease Ryan's face when he was about to deal that zinger at the end. So funny!

[@jianpanglam570]

Rob and Ryan seem tired, maybe too many interviews? Lol

[@DiviAugusti]

They had a bunch of these with the same background come out in the last 24 hours.

[@williammcgechie4504]

sounds like it !

[@jianpanglam570]

Haha, unfortunately I think you're exactly correct. Hope they had a good day's off to rest the next day lol

[@animalian01]

Getting promotion twice is a great achievement, but it gets harder the higher they climb

[@zugzug6773]

People have come to expect victory. Everyone should just take a breath and realize every step may take a few seasons.

[@shmooveyea]

Whoa, really? You should call them to let them know it gets harder!!!!

[@DrZaius3141]

@@shmooveyea The point is that they got a boost in popularity due to their owners and that allows them to sign more players, staff, etc who otherwise wouldn't be available at their level. They will however quickly reach a point where that boost just isn't there anymore because at a certain level every club's reputation, legacy, tradition will vastly out-"score" their boost. Once that happens, the club will truly be tested on merit (and money, which is where they have a harder time competing with billionaire owners) and that's when things are going to become interesting. It's like when you play FM and you use the editor to set a lower league club's reputation to a much higher value - they will easily rise through the leagues, but even their new value won't help them against even more well-known teams.

[@vincentchapman2968]

As a supporter off a non league team in England I take my hat off to you. Such an important and impressive way you done things. As for the new build total agree it's money they want but worded different every time.

[@CarolP-uk]

Best thing that ever happened to Wrexham AFC was these guys taking it over 👏🏻👏🏻 Looks like it’s given the town a boost as well which is fantastic 😀😀

[@67skins75]

I can imagine a lot of people saying "Regina who"? Kuddos to Ryan for the SASK shoutout.

[@brent4723]

Should have said Moose Jaw instead.

[@davidbarton7838]

NICE ONE LADS. come on the town. 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿

[@daielfmc]

RYAN / ROB we need Wrexham merch in USA!!!! Pls

[@alivenumber5]

20-30k is a good atmosphere without being cavernous. Take a lesson from American soccer where MLS struggled to populate NFL stadiums. Italy also has an issue with cavernous empty stadiums designed for the 1990 world cup.

[@_cb336]

There’s no comparison between MLS and the top ranks of British football. Spurs fill a 60,000 seat stadium every game, and the average for the league is in the high 30k range. If Wrexham make it to the Prem, they’re gonna need every seat they can get.

[@Red_Snappa]

@@_cb336 It's all relative though. Spurs is a huge club in a massive city. Wrexham's a town....big catchment area yes, but 25k (mbe even 30k) is more sustainable for 'IF' we do ever get up to the Champ/Prem heights, which might _never_ happen! When you see large stadiums with the crowd dotted about - it looks & sounds awful, and we will have those times when we're crap again with lower demand for tickets again. But N Americans have a different psyche to us conservative Brits don't they?

[@striderwhiston9897]

@@_cb336 Are forgetting that spurs is located in London and Wrexham is located in north wales? London has a population of 8.9 million whereas the ENTIRETY of north wales (and north wales is massive) has a population of about 600k, with Wrexham county borough having a population of 135k.

[@_cb336]

@@striderwhiston9897 Oh yes, it must have slipped my mind :) But where are you gonna put the away fans? Prem sides bring a lot of support, and the regs require at least one block of seats either side of the away end, so that's ~15% of Wrexham's current capacity gone. Football's a business-the more seats the better. And I believe they mentioned an iterative approach, which is the sensible way to do it. Wrexham are not just a football club, they're a worldwide phenomenon now. Try booking a hotel there. It's a destination ground. First step is probably the main stand with some nice, lucrative hospitality suites to keep the coffers topped up. However they do it, they won't build more capacity than they need and leave the crowd looking like a p***k in a shirtsleeve. Ryan Reynolds is a super smart businessman. Gotta trust him to make the right moves.

[@striderwhiston9897]

@@_cb336 Wrexham is a working class town, it's not very big nor is it touristy, it won't be considered a good away day and it's out of the way for many in the prem. Having such a large stadium would absolutely ruin the atmosphere (think stadium MK) and could possibly put Wrexham into a ton of unnecessary debt with little return. with Wrexham's catchment area, at most we will need a 25k stadium, anything more would be excessive and honestly detrimental. Consider that Cardiff has the biggest stadium for a football club in Wales, and when they were in the prem, they got an average attendance of around 28k-30k, and Cardiff has a metropolitan area of over a million.

[@jhamptonjr]

I love the way the profile of the roof line of the Wrexham stands looks like the profile of a 1972 Camaro cowl induction Hood. Like the one the 302 used to come with.

[@NinjastarPancake]

OG wrexham fans are so lucky man. Im so happy for them

[@captainbadger1013]

Brentford are in the prem and have a stadium of 17,250. Realistically 25,000 - 30,000 would be more than enough for Wrexham whatever league they are in.

[@sonofanarchy6628]

Yes 40,000 not so far , could provide wrexham with money like concerts, international football to help support club , you done wonder's for wales, not just wrexham

[@SalinasIT]

Totally, they are not thinking only on Wrexham games, the are totally planing for bigger things like concerts, festivals, and lot of events to attract tourism for the city

[@bobhob35]

@@SalinasIT I remember when they used to have concerts at the racecourse. It must be twenty years since, and I would love it to become a multi function venue again.

[@sonofanarchy6628]

@SalinasIT exactly if the story needs to continue, so does the rise to keep wrexham in good place for years to come ,because nothing guaranteed 👌

[@alisonjohnson7935]

In the last 3 years we’ve had Kings of Leon, Stereophonics and Olly Murs play at the Racecourse Ground

[@striderwhiston9897]

@@SalinasIT This is just not taking into account that the atmosphere will be horrible and the cost would be incredibly expensive for the return. Mk dons tried the "Build it and they will come" mindset and it failed horribly.

[@Mgg407]

It’s amazing what these two men have achieved. And Wrexham must be still pinching themselves. I have a similar dream for my hometown Sutton. It’s good to see it happening elsewhere!! Well done Wrexham !

[@clj.4874]

The only way you're getting 55k on that plot of land is to knock the whole thing down and rebuild it a lot further away from Mold Road. Would never fill it and would be left playing in a half empty stadium. Don't need anything near that. 20k capacity would do nicely, all we will ever need.

[@DS9TREK]

Yeah, it's like Franchise FC in Milton Keynes. The stadium is 30,500 but they're lucky to get 9,000 in there.

[@clj.4874]

@@DS9TREK 55 thousand, even 25 thousand is absurd. We would have to be in the top 6 of the premier league to ever get close to that lol. A soul less stadium with nobody in it otherwise . Prefer a packed out one so 20k tops i think. Wrexham is very much on the up but lets not get carried away, the level of interest will plateau at some point. Maybe not take the 45-55k comment too serious in video.

[@tukewvu]

Small-time thinking never got anyone, anywhere.

[@clj.4874]

@@tukewvu called being realistic. Lets get the kop done first, which is taking alot longer than thought, step at a time.

[@gillt2812]

This a long term plan, they don’t want 45k seats in leauge one. 20-25k will be more than plenty until we’re premier league starters

[@isaacbarnette7381]

Ryan Reynolds mentioning Akron, Ohio first of all places blows my mind 🤯 lol 😂

[@Sub2GigaChad]

Sandusky is not a shithole like Akron.

[@user-wf3lr1gj7o]

Yep, I know they were talking council regulations. Thanks for clearing that up.

[@lukeroberts6246]

I live in Wrexham. Not sure how you fit 45-55k seats in the racecourse

[@BatteryH1862]

You build up, not out. 2nd deck is the only way to leep it within the footprint.

[@lukeroberts6246]

@@BatteryH1862 foundations aren't strong enough. Mold road stand was done on a budget so no scope to increase them. Only side that you could do is the kop when the foundations are done this summer.

[@recantedforger5850]

New plan. You're not allowed to live broadcast games to my understanding, however what if you had the game coverage on a giant screen AT the stadium only it doesn't face the stadium it faces a giant lot/field adjacent. Could you do some fun tailgating like a drive in theater? Probably the stupidest idea ever, but these guys get me thinkin

[@DS9TREK]

​@@recantedforger5850it's only the Saturday 3pm kick offs that can't be shown live, but anyway, the police would refuse permission to do your plan. I live near to Wembley Stadium and the council/police won't even let the local pubs show matches from Wembley Stadium on their TVs because it encourages ticketless fans to turn up.

[@tukewvu]

If you really want to know Luke, I would suggest taking like parts from other stadiums and measuring the footprint of them with Google maps, and superimposing them over the Racecourse Ground. You would be surprised how many seats could fit on the Wrexham Lager side if they just removed One of the housing towers and built out toward the parking lot behind it. With that footprint, you can put 15k with Luxury Boxes on just that side with the increased footprint. If they made the new Kop simply larger than the released renderings or wrapped it around to meet up with the new Wrexham lager stand, the Kop could easily hold 10k with the space there. That's at least 25k+ seats by just redoing those two sides. It gets more complicated with the other two, but if you extended the University end into the parking lot of the University, you could double the existing amount of seats there, but that's probably the side they will give to away fans, so that may get resolved last. The Macron stand would have to get completely rebuilt from the ground up as a rather steep and narrow double decker to accommodate 8-10k on the same footprint. Again, I would encourage you to look at other sections of current stadiums with their seating capacities and use their dimensions to see what possible. Personally, I don't think anything about 22-25k is appropriate until a sustained run in the Prem is established, and maybe not even then.

[@courtsidemanor1096]

So when is "Bienvenidos a Necaxa" coming?

[@Toracube]

Great guys. What a trip Wrexham are having….

[@davearnold5763]

Thanks for the Regina, Saskatchewan shout-out!

[@DNOPLAYSGAMES]

45k seats, ive never heard anything so bloody insane. imagine that when they’re back in the national league. Especially because most people in that area support ManU and Liverpool

[@TukikoTroy]

Guys, if you are having problems with local planning committees... have a quite word with Jeremy Clarkson.

[@paxo666]

The guys look tired, must've been a long media day

[@ricardovazquez4333]

Would there be a necaxa show? :)

[@slyde734]

I'm going to England in June for the first time and I asked my English friend if I should head out to Wrexham for a visit. He told me it would be like going to America to visit Topeka.

[@TemporalOrb]

Wrexham isn’t in England so the analogy doesn’t really make sense. More like going to America to visit Tijuana

[@williamhoward7439]

Where does your friend in England live, obviously a numpty. North wales is a beautiful and ancient land, Chester is only 12 miles or so from Wrexham, one of the most beautiful places in the world.

[@williamhoward7439]

Also, to compare anywhere in the UK with our history to any place in America is embarrassing. The church I married in is over 1000 years old ffs.

[@slyde734]

@@TemporalOrb Or Medicine Hat.

[@slyde734]

@@williamhoward7439 What do you have against Topeka? It is a lovely town on the Kansas plains, home to the Old Prairie Town Museum and it boasts a population three times that of Wrexham.

[@denysedubois9334]

Why did the interviewer wait so long to release this interview? Not a good look about the summer tour questions when the info was released 8 days ago, and I for one, have already bought my tickets within 10 minutes of when they went on sale.

[@DS9TREK]

They waited this long because there was an embargo. Rob and Ryan did these interviews months ago, but FX banned the release until this week.

[@faydn3150]

If Luton could do it, why can't Wrexham

[@andyonions7864]

WHEN they get to the Prem, the target will become the Champions League, then the UEFA cup.

[@DS9TREK]

Champions League is better than old UEFA Cup (it's called Europa League now)

[@MrChristbait]

UEFA cup?? What decade are you living in? My team won it in 1981.🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿

[@_cb336]

@@MrChristbait Running Towards Adversity, Come on you Blues

[@innovirtua]

Now that Gething has "paid a visit", I'm sure that red tape, will "clear right up".

[@paulgriffiths8803]

A rare visit to north Wales from the south Walian council. Go home Gething.

[@innovirtua]

@@paulgriffiths8803 We don't want him back down here either. We're thinking of sending him to Broadmoor.

[@lindafrizzell6824]

Glad to see you are actually using some Canadian cities…..Ryan you are Canadian,…..it’s not all about the USofA…..so could you just remember where you were born….PLEASE..:cause we are so very proud of you…you should be proud of us too…..just sayin…I know you have lived there for a very long time…..but you are our boy….so proud of you..❤

[@rudykraft5526]

I think they misunderstood the goal questions.

[@kevc6115]

They didn't. The interviewer asked about "goals that you made...."

[@garethkeel8448]

Knock down Hamiltons terrible flats and buy the car park behind the tech end and we're there! Love you lads xx

[@user-up5oj8gs6e]

E the minion ....❤😂❤😂

[@kevoreilly6557]

And this is where it goes wrong

[@paulparadoxia]

Please don't make a giant soulless stadium.. Sounds like you said it was "possible" to build each side, but NO THANKYOU 20k stadium tops !!

[@BobTheBlue]

The new Ant & Dec?

[@rolanddeschain965]

Millions of people want to do things and dozens stop them.

[@sharman8489]

45,000 seats. Best get redesigning that Kop, 5,500 won’t be anywhere near enough.

[@shogged]

probably on par; mirror the opposite end, 15k on each side gets you to 41k, throw in the corners and you're right in the neighbourhood of their estimates

[@sharman8489]

The pesky flats willl get in the way of us building 15k down the side. The kop will need be at least 7000 I think and as you say mirror that the other end.

[@DS9TREK]

​@@shoggedthere's no space for that. Even buying up the student accommodation and knocking it down wouldn't help that much.

[@shogged]

@sharman8489 in the context of a 10+ figure construction project, relocating the flats isn’t economically unfeasible and could easily be framed as enriching the university campus with new infrastructure investment

[@shogged]

@@DS9TREK where there is a will, there is a way

[@TheBloblah]

Ryan looks tired. 45 to 55000 is probably excessive.

[@user-im2gy7lm2v]

A 55k stadium for Wrexham would be unsustainable

[@garyg1705]

its been a fantastic story and journey so far. but the reality is that sport is fickle so you can't get hung up on love stories. if results change, attitudes change too.

[@robertfelton1521]

Mk dons stadium always nearly empty think about it Wrexham!

[@_cb336]

MK Dons are shite and because of their history, generally disliked. Wrexham are arguably the most loved team in the world. It’s not just fans that fill stadiums.

[@modernway91]

Look into the history of MK Dons and you would understand why 😂

[@JasenJohns]

Good on the bureaucrats.

[@rkasnake]

that mic of the interviewer made this awful to listen to

[@lkeist]

This is some beautiful thing . Friendship too

[@twistedbarber9622]

Needs a roof

[@user-up5oj8gs6e]

... a roof? Are you sugar😮 or soccer fans???😂😊

[@kevingreig8384]

Can Rob and Ryan say Premier League. Première is a first performance or exhibition not a football league.

[@_cb336]

It’s just pronunciation, though admittedly annoying to Brits. But if they understood that, in this instance, Premier is a name, not a word, they might be more culturally sensitive.

[@striderwhiston9897]

Far too ambitious, 20,000 would probably be the most Wrexham ever need IMO.

[@eagle_rb_mmoomin_418]

Problem is in the prem long term that isn't enough. Lots of clubs are increasing up to at least mid 30s, including Palace, several are now hitting for 50K+. Commercial revenue can be a big differentiator.

[@CDWaite]

You probably would have said the same if they told you they were going to win back to back promotions. They have experts advising them, do you?

[@striderwhiston9897]

@@CDWaite It's just common sense mate, the catchment area of Wrexham is just far too small for a stadium of that size. Cardiff in the prem were the closest to that and even they only got 30,000 average attendance, keep in mind they have a metropolitan area of over a million, whereas Wrexham's equivalent, Wrexham County Borough, has a population of 135,000. Not all of what rob and ryan says are sourced from experts, in the interview posted just a few days ago ryan said the highest Wrexham ever got in the league system was league two, which is false, even with the current naming Wrexham was still in League one till 2005.

[@striderwhiston9897]

@@eagle_rb_mmoomin_418 The issue is you're comparing clubs with a MUCH larger catchment area to Wrexham, could, as an upper max, have a capacity of 25k, which MIGHT get filled on some very important games, but really, anything larger will be a waste of money and will cause a dead atmosphere, did you go to the away day at mk dons? Yeah.. think of their atmosphere.

[@Anhorish]

It was the 2nd division, now the Championship, hence the confusion.

[@user-mv3sb7qe3b]

I am a baseball fan. I subscribe to MLB Gameday. Every game I listen to, and I listen nearly every day, they play the bit about the mashup of baseball and football featuring Rob McElhenney. Between EVERY inning,. Whenever there is a Pitcher change. At first it was cute, but 10 to 12 times per game is pretty horrible. It has become a sort of torture. I hate you, I hate your football club. Please stop torturing me. Speak with MLB and tell them "Once per game is enought". Then I will stop hating you and your football club. You are driving me nuts! Budapeter

[@user-wf3lr1gj7o]

Wot? You bought a club and bought players that play at higher levels and you got promoted? who'd have guessed...ffp=red tape? boo hoo

[@wilhurst315]

Listen again. The red tape they were talking about was building regs for stadium expansion, nothing to do with FFP.

[@DS9TREK]

Yeah, they're talking about building regulations. It's why we don't have enough homes in the UK.

[@_cb336]

Let me guess: your club is shite, right?

[@Mitch4102wxm]

no we've got plenty more to spend thank you very much

[@bigmoney1723]

Come to Louisville and play Louisville City FC!!!!!