The Welsh club can start dreaming about the top flight after sealing a historic, third-successive promotion out of League One
"We'd be lying if the dream wasn't Premier League," Ryan Reynolds said during his first appearance in front of the media at the Racecourse Ground back in October 2021, some 36 hours after watching Wrexham live for the first time alongside fellow Hollywood actor Rob McElhenney.
"We clearly have the structure and system potentially to allow us to grow at that scale. Why not dream big?" McElhenney added. Those bold comments from the Wrexham owners, who had completed a £2 million takeover of the club nine months earlier, were surprising considering they'd just witnessed a 3-2 defeat away at Maidenhead that left the Red Dragons six points adrift of the National League play-off places.
At that stage, their desire to turn Wrexham into a "global force" seemed like nothing more than a pipe dream. The Welsh outfit did go on to reach the play-offs, only to suffer an agonising 5-4 semi-final defeat to Grimsby Town, setting Reynolds and McElhenney's ambitious project back by a full year.
But that only strengthened their resolve. Wrexham bounced back to win the National League title in 2022-23 with a record points haul of 111, returning to the Football League after a 15-year absence, and won successive promotions for the first time in their 159-year history the following season by finishing second in League Two.
It was a remarkable achievement that forced the football world to start taking Reynolds and McElhenney seriously, but many outsiders still expected the fairy tale to peter out from there. After all, no club had ever earned three promotions on the spin in the top five tiers of English football.
Wrexham weren't fazed, though; it was just another wall to bust through en route to the big time. The hard work continued behind the scenes, and sure enough, the unstoppable Red Dragons freight train has kept running this season, all the way to a League One runners-up berth – secured by Saturday's win over Charlton Athletic – that now leaves them just one step away from the Premier League.
'Mentality of the group is so strong'
Any concerns over the jump to League One being too great for Wrexham were immediately erased as Phil Parkinson's side amassed 13 points out of a possible 15 from their opening five games of the 2024-25 campaign, laying down a marker with impressive 3-0 victories over both Reading and old rivals Shrewsbury Town.
That superb start set up a blockbuster 'Hollywood Derby' meeting with Birmingham City as Reynolds and McElhenney went toe-to-toe with Blues minority investor and NFL legend Tom Brady for the first time. Wrexham were three points ahead of Birmingham at the League One summit before kick-off, but that lead, and their unbeaten record, was extinguished as they went down 3-1 at St Andrew's, with Reynolds, McElhenney, Brady David Beckham all watching on from the stands.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, the Red Dragons came crashing back down to earth, and only won three of their next seven games, dropping to third in the table after a frustrating 2-2 draw at Charlton. A strong response was needed to get back on track, and that's exactly what Parkinson got through November and December.
Wrexham picked up seven wins alongside two draws while suffering just one defeat in that period, with a stoppage-time strike from Steven Fletcher sealing a 2-1 win over Wigan Athletic that lifted them back into the automatic promotion places.
"The mentality of the group is so strong, and that showed again today," Parkinson said after the game, and that would not be the last time they would prove their mettle, either.
AdvertisementGetty Images'Circus' rolls on
Wrexham did not, though, maintain their momentum at the start of the year. They were beaten away by Barnsley and Shrewsbury on either side of a narrow win over Peterborough United, before being held to a 1-1 draw by Birmingham in the second Hollywood Derby of the season at the Racecourse.
The Red Dragons then saw their 22-match unbeaten home record ended in a disappointing 3-2 defeat to Stevenage. That result left Wrexham six points adrift of second-placed Wycombe Wanderers, and a frustrated Parkinson described the performance as "nowhere near good enough".
There would be more bumps in the road to come, but Wrexham never allowed their collective standards to drop that far again. Indeed, they only lost two of their next 10 games, winning seven, including vital back-to-back 1-0 victories against promotion rivals Wycombe and Stockport County.
Destiny was in Wrexham's hands again, and after subsequent wins over Exeter City and Burton Albion, they took the opportunity to take a giant step towards the Championship by seeing off Blackpool at Bloomfield Road on Easter Monday – boosted by a pre-match speech from McElhenney. With just two games to go, Wrexham needed only five points to be sure of promotion.
The Racecourse then prepared for the visit of Charlton, who were only four points behind Parkinson's side themselves, only for opposition manager Nathan Jones to make an ill-advised decision and aim a subtle dig at Reynolds and McElhenney ahead of the clash. "It's a bumper game, we have to go to the circus and see what we can get," said the ex-Southampton boss.
Didn't anybody warn Jones that you should never poke a dragon? Inevitably, his words came back to haunt him as the Addicks found themselves on the wrong end of a 3-0 scorelinethat, coupled with Wycombe's loss at Leyton Orient earlier on Saturday, confirmed Wrexham's place in the Championship next term and sparked wild celebrations in north-east Wales.
GettySmart transfer moves
Wrexham's latest promotion has to go down as their most surprising yet. It's not unheard of for teams to go straight from the National League to League One, but earning promotion from the third tier at the first time of asking is far less common. That Parkinson's side managed it, then, is a testament to not only the never-say-die mentality that runs through the dressing room, but also a series of clever moves in the transfer market that gave the Red Dragons the edge down the finishing stretch.
In the winter window, Parkinson brought in highly-rated forward Sam Smith from Reading in a club record £1m deal, while Wrexham also snapped up two Championship stars: former England international Jay Rodriguez from Burnley and Hull City winger Ryan Longman. All three quickly established themselves as regulars in Parkinson's line up, recording double-figures for goal contributions between them to help Wrexham get over the line.
Rodriguez added to Wrexham's pool of ex-Premier League players, too, after the previous captures of Fletcher and James McClean. Their wealth of combined experience in the top flight made all the difference in the tighter games where a bit of extra nous was needed.
Reynolds and McElhenney's investment in new players last summer was also crucial. Ollie Rathbone has been arguably Wrexham's Player of the Season – even earning a comparison to Lionel Messi from Fletcher – while George Dobson has shone in a deeper midfield role and Lewis Brunt has been a real asset in defence.
It was also the right decision to sign Arsenal academy graduate Arthur Okonkwo on a free transfer after his impressive loan spell in 2023-24, despite his mid-season injury and form struggles. He's shown a lot of character in recent months, and there is no doubt he will hold onto the No.1 jersey in the Championship.
Getty Images SportThe 1-0 masters
Okonkwo has recorded an incredible 23 clean sheets in his 31 League One appearances for Wrexham, highlighting his reliability between the sticks. But he also owes a debt to the robust defence in front of him.
Eoghan O'Connell and Max Cleworth have formed a formidable centre-back relationship, while Brunt and Thomas O'Connor have both made important contributions while fighting it out for the final slot in Parkinson's back three. Wrexham have largely been able to absorb pressure and dominate aerial battles, rarely conceding from set-pieces in their disciplined 3-5-2 set-up.
That solid platform has allowed the Red Dragons to become the 1-0 masters of League One. Ten of their 26 wins have come via that scoreline – a new club record – and a further seven by a one-goal margin.
“I guess there are worse records to break than the one for most 1-0 victories,” McElhenney wrote on X after Wrexham's narrow win against Stockport in March. “But boy, is it terrible for the nervous system.” Indeed, Wrexham haven't been as fluid going forward as in previous years, but they have developed the useful habit of grinding out results.
It hasn't been pretty, but it has been very effective. "A real determination to see the job through by keeping our concentration levels high," Parkinson has said when asked to explain his team's success. "We do always push for that second goal, but when you don’t take the chances, you have to show you’re strong and resolute."
