Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney have won the hearts and minds of Wrexham fans with a series of smile-worthy stunts.
From flooding the town with gin to making life easier for fans with additional needs, the superstar owners have proven kindness costs nothing - although an injection of Hollywood cash can help.
It's no exaggeration to say the acting duo have transformed the club and shone a global light on the city. Their generosity has been incredible and seems to know no limits.
Here, we've taken a look at just a few of the kind acts and gestures they have made since becoming honorary Welshmen:
Donating £6,000 to get a disabled fan an adapted bath
When Dragons fan Aiden Stott appealed for "friends and strangers" to help him get a new bath and mechanical hoist, he probably wasn't expecting one of his club's new owners, fresh from signing the takeover papers, to get him over the line.
Just one day after Mr Stott, who has cerebral palsy, launched the campaign, It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia star McElhenney, who had only taken over the club two days prior, ensured that he would get his new bathroom by donating the full target amount of £6,000. You can read more about that here.
Hollywood trailer video
The American and Canadian actors have embraced the local culture with endearing Hollywood charm. The A-listers starred in a hit advert for Ifor Williams Trailers, who had been shirt sponsors for the Dragons since 2016, shortly after taking over the club.
“Ifor Williams Trailers has been Britain’s leading trailer manufacturer for over 60 years,” McElhenney said.
“Nothing says I’m thinking about you… and your horse… like an Ifor Williams trailer,” Reynolds quipped.
The video has been viewed more than 360,000 times on Wrexham AFC’s Facebook page and circulated even more widely with shares, propelling its brand to a much larger audience thanks to the Hollywood duo.
Donating £10,000 after Jordan Davies' baby died
Wrexham midfielder Jordan Davies and his partner Kelsey Edwards lost their baby boy Arthur when he was born stillborn in December 2021.
Kelsey later launched a GoFundMe, saying: “Our baby boy, Arthur Andrew Davies was born sleeping on the 14th December 2021. The support we’ve received during this time has been amazing.”
The family had the goal of raising £1,500 for stillbirth and neonatal death charity Sands UK, which funded a suite for grieving families at Wrexham Maelor hospital. The club’s owners, together with their partners Blake Lively and Kaitlin Olson, surpassed the target by donating £10,000. You can read more about that here.
Kitting out a local youth team
Kayleigh Burton launched a GoFundMe to raise funds for her son’s Futsal team, FC United of Wrexham U12s, to get their own kit. The family had suffered a difficult year after the loss of her ex-partner and son’s father, Adam Bradshaw, a player for local amateur club FC Queens Park.
Wrexham co-owner Reynolds donated £1,600 to the cause, and Kayleigh could not believe it.
She said: “I’m lost for words, and over the moon. Thank you Ryan for putting a smile on the team’s face, if thank you is even enough. Keegen is Wrexham’s number one fan. His dad would be made up for him and bursting with pride.”
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Donating to Wrexham foodbank
There is no doubt the Hollywood takeover coincided with a hard time for local people, with Covid-19 and an extraordinary cost-of-living crisis setting in.
The millionaire owners have done their bit for local causes, including a financial donation to Wrexham foodbank, which works hard to support the less fortunate.
A Wrexham Foodbank spokesperson revealed the news by saying: “Thank you so much to Rob McElhenney and Ryan Reynolds for their recent generous financial donation that will enable us to continue to distribute food and toiletries and give help to local people in crisis.”
Donating £5,000 in memory of young Halifax Town fan
The Wrexham owners' kindness also extends to fans of all kit colours.
Halifax Town fan Noah Brown, 19, died from terminal bowel cancer in August 2022.
“We are raising money and awareness to help other teenagers and their families through the darkest time of their lives,” mum Julie Brown wrote online.
The family later received a £5,000 donation from “Ryan and Rob and Wrexham”, which was to be given to the Teenage Cancer Trust.
Drinks are on us!
What better way to celebrate a year in charge of Wrexham AFC than with a bar tab for 365 G&Ts? Reynolds and McElhenney left a letter, addressed to “Wrexham”, at The Turf Hotel near the Racecourse Ground.
“Just a quick note to thank each and every one of you on our 1-year anniversary with the club,” they wrote. “The love and adoration for Wrexham FC - it’s unlike anything we’ve ever seen. That’s why we’ve put up 365 Aviation Gin and Tonics behind the bar. Have one on us.”
Envy over local artist’s work
University of Chester student Clare Chiddicks combined her love of Wrexham AFC and art to create an amazing portrait of McElhenney using the words to “Wrexham is the Name”.
Reynolds seemed jealous that the talented fan had chosen McElhenney as her muse, with a simple one-word reply of “Ahem”.
But McElhenney loved it, saying: “Clare, you’re a wonderful artist with impeccable taste”.
Ms Chiddicks admitted she “did her favourite first” before posting a portrait of Deadpool actor Reynolds in the same style.
Reynolds seemed happy with his portrait, asking: “Permission to wallpaper Rob’s entire home with this?”
But McElhenney had the last laugh, revealing a “tattoo” of Reynolds’ portrait on his chest. “The wallpaper AND the ink would just be weird,” McElhenney quipped.
Investing in the squad
Too many fans wish their club would see better investment from their mega-money owners, but Wrexham's set-up has certainly had a financial boost in the past two years.
Star striker Paul Mullin is not the only player Wrexham have plucked from higher divisions, often at a significant cost especially relative to other teams in the National League.
The club spent around £300,000 bringing AFC Wimbledon attacker Ollie Palmer to the Racecourse, while Mullin is reportedly earning £4,500 per week (more than four times the typical salary in the National League).
As if the players weren’t motivated enough, the club’s owners have also promised the men's squad a £250,000 bonus if they seal a return to the EFL. You can read more about that here.
Upgrading the club
Reynolds and McElhenney came to north Wales with limited knowledge on the beautiful game, but they have always been aware that success on the pitch comes from cultivating the right environment around it.
TV cameras captured the moment the A-list actors first saw the state of the club gym. McElhenney asked “is that the gym?” with Reynolds only able to muster the words “holy sh*t”.
“Yeah, this needs a little work,” McElhenney admitted.
Meanwhile, the pair have bigger plans for the oldest club in Wales than just a fresh lick of paint, with work already started on a state-of-the-art training centre and a new 5,500-capacity Kop stand.
Sharing the spoils
Wrexham Women won promotion to Welsh football's top women's league with a 1-0 play-off victory against Briton Ferry at the weekend.
But the women’s success is part of a broader strategy rather than an isolated stroke of luck, with the club announcing in February that the team would become semi-professional if promoted to help reach the objective of becoming the best team in Wales “in the shortest period” possible.
“The commitment of the club’s owners in their mission statement was clear, in that their ambition was to grow all areas of Wrexham AFC, not just the first team and this is an important step towards achieving this,” the statement read.
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