Rob Mac, Ryan Reynolds Reveal When Wrexham’s New Kop Stand Will Actually Open

The Red Dragons have begun construction on a new 7,500-seat stand.

The 5,500-capacity new Kop Stand includes the provision for safe standing, hospitality and accessible seating. | Populous

Rob Mac and Ryan Reynolds have finally given an opening date for Wrexham’s new Kop Stand, hoping for it to be in use from the summer of 2027.

After years of anticipation, construction on the new 7,500-seat stand began in 2025, with work initially expected to be completed next year. The new Kop Stand will restore the Racecourse Ground to a four-sided venue and increase the overall capacity to just over 18,000.

It will also allow the venue to achieve UEFA Category 4 compliance — the highest ranking for European soccer stadiums — and would allow it to host Champions League, Europa League, and European Championship matches. Wrexham’s renovated stadium has already been nominated as one of the host venues for the United Kingdom’s bid to host the 2035 Women’s World Cup.

Supporters will have noticed that construction work has made steady progress in recent weeks, with steel pillars erected alongside the elevator shafts. Work is set to continue throughout the summer, with an official opening date also teased by the club’s owners.

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When Will the Wrexham Kop Stand Open?

Wrexham initially hoped the Kop Stand would be open this summer. | Robbie Jay Barratt - AMA/Getty Images

Wrexham had initially hoped to have the new Kop Stand open this summer, with ambitions for it to be ready for the Under-19 European Championship in 2026. The Red Dragons first revealed plans to build a new stand as part of the Wrexham Gateway scheme in 2022 before the project was delayed by various unforeseen issues involving both planning and funding.

With those delays mounting, the club submitted an improved planning application last summer for an additional 2,250 seats to be included in the initial design. The revised plans would increase the stand’s capacity from 5,500 to 7,750 seats, with the Welsh club eager to maximize the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to develop a new and iconic Kop Stand.

Those ambitions will come at a cost, though. The overall cost of the stand is expected to reach roughly $95 million, with Wrexham contributing $67.62 million. The Red Dragons have already secured a controversial $23.46 million grant from the Welsh government that will help them meet the UEFA Category 4 criteria needed to bring competitive men’s international matches back to Wrexham.

The other cost is time. Although the club hoped to have the Kop Stand open during the 2026/27 Championship season, co-chairman Mac confirmed it is now expected to be ready for the 2027/28 season instead.

“I am going to say this publicly, just because it is easier once you say it publicly,” he told Collider Interviews. “It is going to be ready for the start of the 2027/28 season. It is going to be open for business, and that means butts in seats. Not next season, but the season after that. There will be people sitting in the seats, watching football.”

Reynolds added: “This man makes things happen. If you tell Rob something impossible, you watch his pupils suddenly dilate and something happens internally.”

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