Welcome to Wrexham season one spoilers below
After a dramatic conclusion to a historic season, it is only right that Welcome to Wrexham should return for a second series.
And today, the documentary – which follows actors Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney as they bring Hollywood glamour to a humble football club and help turn around its fortunes – lands on Disney+.
In its review, the Standard praised the second season: “Fortunately, Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney seem to be in it for the long haul, and have fallen desperately and giddily in love with Wrexham AFC. Their enthusiasm is infectious; this may not be your average fairy tale trajectory, but it hardly matters.”
The docu-series has won Wrexham unlikely fans all around the world. Now, the second chapter is back for more drama as the team tries to capture the National League title. If you’re just joining Welcome to Wrexham now, we’ve answered some of the show’s big questions.
When did Ryan Reynolds buy Wrexham?
Reynolds bought Wrexham with friend and fellow actor Rob McElhenney in November 2020 and the pair had no previous experience of leading a sports team. They quickly got up to speed, though, and the documentary shows them learning the rules and regulations of football as well as the behind-the-scenes dealings.
And it seems like the duo have, for better and for worse, become utterly obsessed with football since acquiring the team: “We didn’t know anything about the sport – now we’re obsessed with it,” Reynolds once said. “It’s a living, breathing, screaming nightmare for me. Now I love this sport so much that I hate it. It’s one of the greatest things that’s ever happened to me and genuinely one of the worst.”
The official name of the purchaser was recorded as RR McReynolds Company. Find out Ryan Reynolds’s net worth here and how much he paid for Wrexham here.
Is Ryan Reynolds still acting?
Yes. The Canadian had three film releases in 2021, The Hitman’s Wife’s Bodyguard, Free Guy, and Red Notice. He followed this up with Spirited and The Adam Project in 2022 but said, at the end of 2021, he would be taking “a little sabbatical”.
He made a cameo in the recently released Ghosted and his next leading role is set to be the upcoming fantasy comedy IF, written and directed by John Krasinski.
Who is Rob McElhenney?
McElhenney is the lesser known of the two actors, but will be revered with God-like status for anyone who watches cult comedy series It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia.
Having created the black comedy in 2005, he has written and starred in it ever since, as the show continues to be recommissioned by FX. Through the show, he met his wife Kaitlin Olson and they married in 2008.
What happened in season one of Welcome to Wrexham?
Season one followed Wrexham AFC’s journey since finishing second in the National League in May 2022 and agonisingly missing out on promotion. It was the culmination of a long season that saw them convincing backers, sponsors, and players to take a chance on an ailing, non-league team.
They were also in a dilemma over whether to fire their manager, Phil Parkinson, following some lacklustre performances but they decided to keep the faith.
The reality show was well-watched and received when it was released in August 2022. Reviewers, on the whole, loved it, with The New York Times arguing that Reynolds and McElhenney “seem to be sincere” and that they were benign owners, “certainly by soccer’s standards”.
“They have not saddled the club with debt. They are not using it to try to whitewash the image of a repressive state,” said The New York Times. “They have given a club, and a town, reason to believe, and all for the price of a couple of camera crews.” The first season picked up six Emmy nominations, which are still pending.
What is going to happen in season 2?
In season 2 Reynolds and McElhenney continue their quest of trying to transform their non-league team into a professional-level club. In order to make this leap, they must once again attempt to triumph in the National League in order to gain promotion into League Two – the lowest division of professional football. In English football, there are four leagues in total above the National League: League Two, League One, the Championship, and finally the top tier Premier League.
What have reviewers said about the second chapter?
The second season has received mixed reviews, but the Standard loved it, giving it four stars. “Wrexham AFC may have a huge task ahead of them, but the effect the takeover has had already on the town’s community is clear to see. There’s an excitement and a sense of pride simmering in Wrexham, which has suddenly become overrun by American tourists.”
Rolling Stone said the series “will still give you hope” and The Guardian and The Telegraph both gave the show four-stars. The Independent, however, disagreed, saying that Welcome to Wrexham “fails to do justice to the mud-and-blood world of non-league football”.
