New Wrexham owners leave good first impression on eager fanbase
After Wrexham AFC became the subject of a highly-publicised takeover by Hollywood actors Rob McElhenney and Ryan Reynolds, club Director Spencer Harris spoke with Enda Coll of Team 33 to share what this development will mean for the non-league outfit.
It was finally confirmed this week that Hollywood actors Rob McElhenney and Ryan Reynolds had become the new owners of Wrexham AFC after their bid was approved by the club’s Supporters Trust.
Spencer Harris, a Director of the member-owned club, explained to Enda Coll of Team 33 how the deal came about and his initial impression of the two celebrity stars.
“They’ve really put themselves out there with this acquisition,” he remarked of the openness with which the pair have attempted to carry through the deal from the initial expression of interest to the members’ seal of approval.
“As we are a community-owned club, this hasn’t been something that we have been able to do behind closed doors. This has had to be very public and they’ve had themselves forward to be scrutinised by the few thousand Wrexham fans who owned the club.
“This then needed to be approved by 75% or more of the owners, so this has shown you how serious the guys are.”
In the end, Harris outlined that 99% of members voted in favour of the proposed takeover to afford both McElhenney and Reynolds a comfortable margin of success.
Although the coronavirus has limited what the club’s new owners have been able to do in terms of visiting the Welsh-based club currently playing in English football’s fifth tier, Wrexham is now looking to the future.
“I don’t want to put too much pressure on,” he said cautiously, “but they could have bought a football club higher up the football pyramid than ourselves.
“The reason they’ve looked at Wrexham is because we have the potential to go higher. We have been a Championship club before and we have the catchment area to sustain that level.
“They’re really interested in the journey and shaping something here. They might not necessarily have a great knowledge of football, but they’re big sports fans. They’re going to enjoy the ride and so will we.”