S4C launches new Wrexham AFC documentary series

A new S4C series follows the transformation of Wrexham AFC from cash-strapped National League strugglers to a global brand, following the takeover of the club by Hollywood actors Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney two years ago.

The three-part series Wrecsam…Clwb Ni! (Our Club!) which starts on Wednesday 12 October, will look at the impact of the takeover on the world’s third oldest football club, the town and its people.

The series also crosses the Atlantic to get the lowdown on the purchase from Rob, Ryan and those close to them.

It also hears from some of the players and staff during one of the most momentous seasons in the club’s 156-year history.

Rob McElhenney, best known for creating and starring in the hit sitcom series, It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, as well as appearing in Lost, Fargo and Game of Thrones, told Wrecsam…Clwb Ni!: “We were looking for people with whom we could identify. People that we grew up with.

“And I look around at the faces of the people of Wrexham; they’re my uncles and my aunts, and my cousins, brothers, sisters and the people I grew up with.

“A working-class community, Philadelphia is certainly like that. They work hard and they expect the teams they support to give everything they can.”

Passion

Although both owners admitted to knowing little about football, Wales or Wrexham before buying the club, their passion won fans over during a trans-Atlantic Zoom call to persuade the supporters to entrust the club to them.

Rob added: “On Zoom, it’s just a camera pointed right at you, and you can’t see them so you can’t see how they’re reacting. It was really terrifying. I remember talking to Ryan after it was over, and he was dripping with sweat.

“He was so sweaty, and I was like, ‘bud, what’s going on?’ and he was like, ‘I was so nervous. I don’t know that I’d seen him nervous before, at least not like that. To me, it just showed that he cared as much as I did.”

One of the lifelong Wrexham supporters featured in the series is Lili Jones, who at the tender age of 16, also plays for the club’s women’s team and the Wales Under 17s side.

She said: “They [Rob and Ryan] actually want to be part of the Wrexham community, and that’s incredible to us, and it actually brings an even bigger feeling of togetherness in our community.”

Wrecsam…Clwb Ni! Is starts on Wednesday 12 October at 9.00 pm on S4C with English subtitles and is also available on demand on S4C Clic, iPlayer and other platforms.