Money men! Ryan Reynolds & Rob McElhenney not on Wrexham ‘transfer committee’ as recruitment strategy of Hollywood-owned Red Dragons is explained

Two A-list actors have pumped considerable funding into the Red Dragons since completing a stunning takeover in 2021. Across their four years at the helm, remarkable progress has been made in North Wales on and off the field.

More records were broken in the last recruitment window, with Sam Smith becoming a £2 million addition, and there is the promise of more investment to come as Wrexham take aim at one day reaching the Premier League – with their award-winning documentary series covering every step along the way.

Reynolds and McElhenney will continue to provide their full support, while potentially welcoming more backers on board, but they do not have any input on who should be targeted and when – with those important decisions being left in the hands of others.

Wrexham CEO Michael Williamson has told The Leader of how business is completed, with another historic window enjoyed early in 2025: “We have to make sure that we support Phil [Parkinson] and give ourselves and him the best chance to get promoted. In 90 minutes anything can happen, but what we wanted to do was make sure that we provided him the support that he felt was necessary.

“We have a committee that works as a transfer committee; myself, Shaun Harvey, Humphrey Ker, Phil and Les Reed, so that helps us kind of stress test any signings that we’re looking to make. We talk a little bit about the strategy of who we’re looking to bring in, the profiles and then ultimately the approach and the financial investment.

“What’s been important, going back to being sustainable and having more of a long-term vision and not just the now, is how we balance the squad to have players that are veterans, leaders and experienced that can show that dressing room what it means to win, with players that are talented with quality that can also come along for the long-term.”

Wrexham are looking to make history in the 2024-25 campaign by becoming the first EFL side to enjoy three successive promotions, with shrewd transfer business helping to make that possible. They are sat third in the League One table at present.