The “Welcome to Wrexham” docuseries became a global sensation in its first season, highlighting a men’s soccer team owned by actors Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney that found its way back to EFL League Two after 15 years.
And now the sixth episode of the series’ second season is shining the light on the Wrexham FC women’s team, an amateur team that features stories previously untold. If you ask McElhenney, there’s a reason they decided to feature the women’s team in the new season.
“It’s not just an ethical responsibility, but also a huge business opportunity,” he said.
Women’s soccer has been experiencing an uptick in popularity – particularly in the United Kingdom, as England won the Euros for the first time in 2022 and made it all the way to the World Cup final in 2023.
Upon taking over the club, Reynolds and McElhenney invested in Wrexham’s women’s side to the tune of $60,000. The team won a Tier One license and was promoted to Adran Premier, a semi-professional league that tops women’s soccer in Wales.
While players previously had to buy uniforms and equipment themselves, they no longer have to do so under the new ownership group.
“In terms of change of ownership and what that’s brought, that’s basically given us a platform to be able to increase what we’ve wanted to do, it’s allowed us to reach the ambitions that we set for ourselves,” Gemma Owen, Wrexham’s head of women’s football, told the LA Times.
“Barriers have been commonplace in women’s sport, and particularly women’s football, in the U.K. for many years. We want to get rid of as many of those barriers as possible.”
The women’s club will continue to be covered on the docuseries as it looks to win a playoff and earn promotion. And while some of the team’s players still need to take on second jobs, there is more of a focus on soccer than there was before.
“We’ve had to work harder to kind of get where we are. But I think that adds to the togetherness and the family that we have at Wrexham,” Lili Jones said. “We’ve all got different skills and different things that we’ve learned from having to work. It’s just a part of the women’s game.
“Eventually that will die out and I’m so excited for future generations to get the chance to be professional footballers. That foundation is set now for the future of Wrexham Football Club to be part of something very special.”