Ryan Reynolds Pays Emotional Tribute to Wrexham on Milestone Anniversary

The 49-year-old purchased Wrexham with Rob McElhenney on Feb. 9, 2021.

Ryan Reynolds reflected on his journey with Wrexham. | Robbie Jay Barratt/AMA/Getty Images

On the five-year anniversary of his completed takeover of Wrexham, co-owner Ryan Reynolds put together a heartfelt montage to relive the club’s greatest moments over the last half-decade.

Back on Feb. 9, 2021, the Hollywood actor, alongside Rob McElhenney, purchased the oldest club in Wales for around $2.5 million (£2 million). The Red Dragons, who were floundering in the National League at the time, could only dream of the success soon to come.

Wrexham went on to secure back-to-back-to-back promotions, returning to the EFL Championship for the 2025–26 season for the first time in 43 years. Reynolds was with the Red Dragons every step of the way on their meteoric rise up through the English football pyramid, which made his social media tribute to the team, the city and the fans all the more special.

5 years, feels like we’re just getting started. pic.twitter.com/Ojl7W9w0UL

— Ryan Reynolds (@VancityReynolds) February 9, 2026

“Five years,” Reynolds wrote on X. “Feels like we're just getting started.”

The video shows everything from championship winning celebrations to player signings to one-of-a-kind moments shared between Reynolds and McElhenney, the team and the people of Wrexham.

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Reynolds Hails Wrexham As the ‘Most Beautiful Town on Earth’

Ryan Reynolds (above) and Rob McElhenney have turned Wrexham into a global brand. | Robbie Jay Barratt/AMA/Getty Images

In honour of the five-year anniversary, Reynolds and McElhenney sat down with The Athletic to look back on their venture into club ownership, one at its core highlights the community in Wrexham.

“You can hate me, you can hate Rob,” he said. “But you can’t hate that town. I don’t know how you would do that. How can you hate the town of Wrexham? It’s the most beautiful town on earth.

“I see the club as the big, beating heart of the community. Basically, Wrexham’s community centre. Or church. One of them, anyway. There’s a real church, of course! They perform the same function, in as much as they bring people together.

“People who have completely disparate ideologies walk through those (stadium) gates, and they are together, wearing the same colour shirt and singing the same, filthy chants. And they are having a wonderful moment together, regardless of what circumstances in life suggest they should be pushed apart. That’s so powerful.”

Beyond the magic in North Wales, the team has now extended its reach far beyond Wrexham thanks to the Emmy-award winning docuseries, Welcome to Wrexham. The Red Dragons now have fans across the globe tuned in week in and week out to see if the Welsh outfit will indeed do the unthinkable and earn promotion to the Premier League.

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McElhenney Dicusses Phil Parkinson’s Future at Wrexham

Phil Parkinson faced criticism earlier in the season. | Malcolm Couzens/Getty Images

Another constant in Wrexham’s storybook rise is manager Phil Parkinson. The English boss took the job in 2021, dropping down three divisions to the National League to do so, and has since led the Red Dragons to England’s second tier.

“I don’t know I have the words to fully describe how integral Phil has been to the story and success of Wrexham. He said to me very early in our conversations, ‘One thing I know for sure is you will fire me one day,’” McElhenney told The Athletic.

“He said every football manager knows at some stage he will get fired. I said, ‘OK, that’s fair, and I get that’s part of the gig.’ But, Ryan and I talk all the time, and I just don’t see a scenario where Phil Parkinson gets fired. It doesn’t make any sense. He has been the architect, the creator of this.

“From our perspective, he’s got the job for life. Unless he finds another job he wants to go off and do, he’s our coach. He’s our manager. He’s our guy.”

The public backing comes after Parkinson has faced criticism this season after a slow start in the Championship. It took Wrexham four games to secure their first league victory, and then another seven to collect three points at home.

Yet Parkinson eventually got his guys rolling, and the Red Dragons now sit sixth in the table, firmly in the race for the Championship playoffs.

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