Hollywood-backed Wrexham AFC’s pre-season tour to Australia has been announced in typically tongue-in-cheek style, with the Welsh club set to face three A-League teams – including Sydney FC – ahead of their first attempt at securing promotion to the Premier League.
The Red Dragons will play Melbourne Victory at Marvel Stadium on July 11, Sydney FC at Allianz Stadium on July 15 and Wellington Phoenix at Sky Stadium on July 19.
Wrexham AFC is coming to Sydney.Credit: AP
The trip is the first taken by the club – which was purchased by actors Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney in 2021 – beyond the United States, where they have become wildly popular through the award-winning behind-the-scenes Disney+ documentary Welcome to Wrexham. Australia has the third-biggest audience for the show, behind only the US and the United Kingdom, which showcases the club’s rise in a tone that is equal parts earnest and irreverent.
Last month, Wrexham sealed a record third consecutive promotion to the English Championship, putting them just one step away from the riches of the Premier League.
No club before them have stepped up the rungs of the English Football League so quickly, although just surviving in the second tier – against the financial might of relegated sides benefiting from Premier League parachute payments, and other highly capitalised rivals aspiring to reach the world’s most-watched competition – will be a gargantuan new challenge for the team and ownership group, let alone going up again.
Reynolds and wife Blake Lively cheer on WrexhamCredit: Getty Images
“From the very beginning, we wanted to help make Wrexham a globally recognised team, town and brand,” said Reynolds and McElhenney, the club’s co-chairmen, in a statement.
“We could not be more excited to bring the Red Dragons to Australia and New Zealand, and we are particularly proud that this announcement features neither a Men at Work or Hugh Jackman joke. The latter of which took maturity and tremendous restraint. We’re proud of Ryan.
“Of course, we make no promises going forward.”
Wrexham, the third-oldest professional club on the planet, were a battling non-league team when Reynolds and McElhenney took over, but the actors have been able to leverage their own star power, storytelling nous and corporate contacts to transform them into a worldwide brand and a club with big ambitions.
The Red Dragons hadn’t reached England’s second division since 1978-79, and have never played in the top tier.
The club will be accompanied on their tour of Australia and New Zealand by key sponsors, including Aviation American Gin, Gatorade, Meta Quest, United, Visit Wales and Wrexham Lager (a local brand which Reynolds and McElhenney bought last year) – although whether Reynolds, who is married to Hollywood actor Blake Lively, and McElhenney will join the team remains to be seen.
For their A-League opponents, it is a one-of-a-kind opportunity to expose their own brands to the international spotlight – and, on the field, to see how they measure up against a team that finished second in League One this season, behind champions Birmingham City, who are majority owned by US-based Knighthead Capital Management, of whom former NFL star Tom Brady is a small shareholder.
“We’re thrilled to welcome Wrexham AFC to Sydney. Their incredible story and continued rise has captured the imagination of fans in Australia and around the world, and we are proud to be hosting this global sensation,” said Sydney FC chief executive Mark Aubrey.
“Facing a team with such momentum, driven by the passion of Rob and Ryan, is a fantastic opportunity for our club and an amazing chance for our members, and the wider football community, to witness Wrexham and their award-winning docu series first-hand.
“I’m looking forward to seeing Sydney FC and Hollywood glamour mixing in our iconic city at the magnificent Allianz Stadium.”
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