Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney were already pretty well-known for their on-screen endeavors when they purchased the Wrexham AFC and began making the Welcome to Wrexham docuseries for FX. Now the actors have solidified themselves as household names in America and Europe for their contribution to sports, as well, after pouring millions of dollars into the Wales football club in an effort to get it promoted. With big changes coming to the club’s stadium, some fans think the Deadpool and It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia stars are deserving of a pretty significant honor.
Wrexham’s council has approved the addition of 5,500 seats to the Kop stand at STōK Cae Ras — the oldest international football stadium still currently in use — and fans have some pretty strong opinions about who the new Kop should be named after. Unsurprisingly, many have dropped Ryan Reynolds’ and Rob McElhenney’s names as contenders for the moniker, with fan Martin Sonje telling The Leader (UK):
How can we realistically not call it something that includes our current owners' names, as well as the WST (Wrexham Supporters Trust) they saved our club!
Welcome to Wrexham chronicles how the actors put the down-on-its-luck football club on their shoulders, earning the trust of a community that had seen more than its share of hardship. Another fan, David Richards, wrote:
The R & R Kop stand. Without them it would never have been built.
“R & R” does have a nice ring to it, as long as it’s referring to “Ryan and Rob,” and not the more common use of the term “rest and relaxation,” because I’m sure when the players are in action at the STōK Cae Ras, there’s very little of that going on — for the fans or the owners.
Finances come up pretty often on Welcome to Wrexham, whether it’s how much to offer prospective players to upgrades to the field and stadium, and the club’s victories mean all the more if you’ve seen the documentary and how much money — on top of love and work — Rob McElhenney and Ryan Reynolds have put into it. For example, the viral video Paul Rudd took of the emotional moment between the owners when the club was promoted to the English Football League makes a lot more sense when you realize it came after a $12 million loss.
There were plenty of other suggestions for the Kop’s name, however, other than the American actors. Former Wrexham legend Joey Jones, for instance, was a popular option amongst commenters for his contributions to the club’s history, as well as the late Ian “Jacko” Roberts, a die-hard fan and chant leader before his death in 2017 from cancer.
Whatever name the town ultimately decides to go with, it will still be a little while before the Kop is finished. According to The Leader, the renovations won’t be complete for the 2024-25 season and are coming in the next few years.
Welcome to Wrexham is on hiatus for now, but there are always hijinks to be witnessed between the football team’s owners. Rob McElhenney recently shared a fan’s spoof of some classic album covers featuring him and Ryan Reynolds. The Deadpool star, meanwhile, has wrapped on the third movie of the series, and while we wait for that to hit the 2024 movie release schedule in July, you can catch up on Welcome to Wrexham, which is available to stream with a Hulu subscription.
