Ryan Reynolds reveals ‘absolute idiocy’ Wrexham gaffe that risked him and Rob McElhenney a fortune
RYAN REYNOLDS has revealed the “irresponsible endeavour” that he and Rob McElhenney made during their takeover process of Wrexham.
The Hollywood actors’ takeover of the Welsh club was announced in February 2021.
Since then they have invested heavily into the team, facilities and local community.
And this has paid dividends with Wrexham earning back to back promotions in the National League and League Two to put the Racecourse Ground outfit into League One for next season.
However, Deadpool actor Reynolds has now revealed the investment came with a huge financial risk that is “absolute idiocy on paper”.
Speaking on the Dan Patrick Show, he said: “The thing that I will never, ever forget is that first step, that first time we went to Wrexham.
“Because what I think is most insane about this is, we couldn’t go there because it was the apex of the pandemic – we couldn’t actually go there.
“We assumed stewardship of this club before ever touching a blade of grass in the Racecourse.
“This is the most financially irresponsible endeavour that you would ever possibly find.
“It is absolute idiocy on paper.
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“We don’t know that much about financial investment but what we do love, and have loved our whole adult lives, is emotional investment.
“Emotional investment can create a moat around something, and I feel that moat is around Wrexham and it is special for that reason.”
Wrexham finished second in League Two this season to earn an automatic promotion spot to England‘s third tier of football.
The Red Dragons have earned global fanfare thanks to “Welcome to Wrexham” documentary on Disney+.
Reynolds has pulled strings to even get Wrexham to feature in the promotional material for his latest film, “Deadpool & Wolverine”.
Indeed, Red Dragons forward Ollie Palmer has even got a cameo in the movie.
However, Reynolds and McElhenney’s ambitions for the club are far from realised.
Earlier this week they lifted the lid on plans to one day expand the Racecourse Ground to a capacity of 55,000.
This would make it bigger than Manchester City‘s Etihad stadium and Chelsea‘s Stamford Bridge, which have 53,400 and 40,341 respectively.
The ground currently seats 12,600 fans and is already undergoing redevelopment on a new Kop stand with 5,500 seats.
On the plans “It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia” star McElhenney said: “We have a plan in place right now that would eventually work from stand to stand, so eventually you get all four sides.
“It’s hard to say for sure, but we think we could get between 45-55,000 people in there.”
Wrexham have announced they will be playing club friendlies in the USA this summer, while their owners have also joined forces with Mesut Ozil and Kate Upton in investing into Mexican club Mecaxa.
How Ryan Reynolds has been watching Wrexham games in style
CO-OWNER Ryan Reynolds hasn't been able to make it to Wrexham in recent weeks due to filming commitments.
But that hasn’t stopped him from watching his team in style.
Streaming the match on a laptop or even a TV was not grand enough for the Deadpool star as he worked on the set of his latest movie.
With a giant green screen behind him, he could not resist broadcasting Wrexham’s recent game on to the huge projector.
Reynolds and his crew watched on as the Welsh side notched their 23rd win of the season against Crawley Town.
He looked enamoured as the game played on behind him while surrounding by various pieces of Hollywood machinery.
And Reynolds captioned the moment: “Watching the Wrexham game at work: new level unlocked.”
It’s not clear what project Reynolds was working on at the time, with the actor currently developing several new movies including sequels to smash hits Free Guy and Red Notice.