Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney have officially taken over Wrexham AFC

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Hollywood stars Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney’s takeover of Wrexham AFC is officially complete.

McElhenney broke the news on his official Twitter account by saying: ‘The @Wrexham_AFC handover is complete! We’re toasting with a limited-edition bottle of @AviationGin and I am rebranding as Wrob. Both of which I am apparently legally obligated to do as I’ve been informed Ryan now owns my life rights. My lawyer is currently looking into it.’

Tweet courtesy of Rob McElhenney via Twitter

Both men have changed their names on Twitter adding the letter ‘W’ at the beginning in tribute to their new venture.

It’s been reported that an immediate injection of £2 million will be available to the club, according to the BBC.

Tweet courtesy of Wryan Reynolds via Twitter

News broke in 2020 of one of the most bizarre football takeovers ever when Hollywood superstars Rob McElhenney and Ryan Reynolds joined forces to buy 156 year old Welsh football club Wrexham AFC.

Since the news of the takeover broke a lot of people have asked ‘Why do two big Hollywood stars want to buy a little Welsh football team?’ Well, here’s why.

American investors of English clubs is no new thing but traditionally the interest is in high profile clubs such as Manchester United who have the Glazers, Liverpool who have John Henry and Arsenal who have Stan Kroenke.

The reason Americans are so interested in European football teams is because they hold far greater profit opportunities than American sports franchises.

So why have ‘Deadpool’ actor Ryan Reynolds and ‘Always Sunny’ creator Rob McElhenney decided to invest in a 5th tier Welsh team that, lets’s face it, aren’t very good? Well this is why.

First thing you need to know is Wrexham is a fan-controlled team since 2011 so Reynolds and McElhenney had to submit an initial “vote of interest” to the Wrexham Supporters Trust who voted 97.5% in favor of their bid.

After being approved to present their case for ownership, the Hollywood duo held a group video call with the 2,000+ members of Wrexham’s ownership group to present their financial offer.

So here’s what they’re offering. Reynolds and McElhenney will invest $2.6m into the club to pay for players and facilities as well as sign a 25 year stadium lease for $150k a year.

The best part is since Wrexham is fan-owned, they can acquire the club upfront with no cash needed but what’s better is what they plan to do once they claim ownership.

The duo plan to create a “Netflix-style” documentary series which will follow their purchase, investment and hopefully the story of Wrexham’s journey back to success. Such was their confidence of being successful they even filmed their presentation to the Wrexham members to use in the series.

Once the series is filmed and ready to be released the duo will receive $400k per hour of content which means an 8-part series will make $3.2m with a profit margin of 25% earning the new owners $800k in profit. That $800k in profit would instantly make Wrexham a profitable investment.

Tweet courtesy of Wrexham AFC via Twitter

Aside from TV deals, the simple fact that the new owners are globally famous means their celebrity exposure and endorsements will help drive revenue towards merchandise, sponsorships and ticket sales.

A lot of people still can’t quite understand the logic around the purchase and think it’s just two rich American’s splashing some spare cash but don’t forget, Ryan Reynolds sold “Aviation Gin” for $610m, meaning if anyone understands the power of celebrity audience and distribution — it’s him.

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