Wrexham’s Hollywood owners Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney have been criticised by climate activists after it was revealed that the club took 16 domestic flights last season.
The Welsh club earned promotion back to the Football League after a 15-year absence but while they flew to and from eight away games, no other National League club took a single flight for a domestic fixture.
Research by the BBC revealed that most of Wrexham’s flights – to face teams such as Gateshead, Bromley and Maidstone – were out of, or back to, Manchester Airport, with the shortest lasting just 29 minutes while the average flight time was only 43.5 minutes.
Flying to and from domestic matches is common for Premier League clubs to aid player recovery amid packed fixtures schedules but the environmental impact of short-haul flight have made them increasingly controversial, with green activists speaking out against the practice.
For example, the Manchester to Newcastle flight taken for a game against Gateshead was a journey that would have taken around three hours by coach or two and a half hours by train.
In addition to the 16 flights with the squad on board, BBC research also found 16 further ‘positioning’ flights – where an often empty plane is flown into the airport it is collecting its passengers from, creating additional emissions.
Wrexham had been approached for comment by BBC Sport.
Since Reynolds and McElhenney’s high-profile purchase of Wrexham, there has been a huge wave of interest around the club and this summer they embarked on a pre-season tour of the United States – packing out stadiums in San Diego and Florida for matches against the likes of Premier League sides Chelsea and Manchester United.
Wrexham have been on a pre-season tour of the USA— (USA TODAY Sports via Reuters Con)
The Hollywood owners also flew the squad out for an all-expenses-paid trip to Las Vegas to celebrate promotion. This all comes despite their mission statement on the club website that pledges a “commitment to a more ecologically-sustainable version of the club and stadium.”
Environmental activists have criticised the club and owners for these practices, with Katie Cross, who runs the organisation Pledgeball that works with clubs to “engage fans and lower their footprints”, frustrated by their “surging environmental impact”.
Cross said: “The club, with the full backing of their new owners, seem to be following the well carved out track of measuring success through global expansion and financial success.
“Imagine the impact if Wrexham chose to prioritise environmental sustainability in their decision-making and used their huge profile to push it up the football agenda? It would be a game-changer and would cause heads to turn.”
Meanwhile, Frank Huisingh runs campaign group Fossil Free Football and said: “Football has a clear interest in stopping the climate crisis from escalating further. It is therefore sad to see that so many young world-class players are asked to promote a very polluting activity like flying.
“Wrexham AFC shouldn’t have followed their [Premier League clubs’] lead. They should do what is best for fans around the world and stop advertising air travel.”
Reynolds and McElhenney have previously been criticised for flying by private jet to attend Wrexham matches and recently announced a new sponsorship deal with United Airlines.
Rob McElhenney and Ryan Reynolds have been a common sight at the Racecourse Ground over the past two seasons— (PA Wire)
But the Secretary of State for Wales, David TC Davies, defended the owners.
”They’ve done a really really good job over the last few years and I’m certainly not going to knock Wrexham Football Club,” he said. “They’ve taken a lead in promoting football and promoting Wrexham, which they’ve done really well.
“They are perfectly within their rights, perfectly within the laws. I’m sure they are aware of climate change but, at the end of the day, they’ve got to play football. That’s what they do and I think they’re doing a great job.”
