They say you gotta spend money to make money. But to win some you also gotta lose some, and the latter’s proven to have a nauseating effect on Ryan Reynolds.
During the season 2 premiere of the Hulu series Welcome to Wrexham, Reynolds and Rob McElhenney — co-owners of the English Football League’s Wrexham AFC — are informed that the club has lost “loads” of money since the duo took control of the Welsh team in 2021.
The club’s executive director, Humphrey Ker, is the barer of bad news during a meeting with the co-owners. At first, Ker only says they’ve lost “loads” of money, but Reynolds makes it clear he’d like a figure when he tells Ker, “Quantify loads for us.”
Enter Wrexham’s Advisor to the Board Shaun Harvey, who says they’ve lost approximately £10 million, which is roughly some $12 million. The episode premiered back in mid-September, but the figure’s only now making headlines after People recently wrote about it.
Reynolds’ reaction after hearing the sum? “I’m gonna throw up,” he says in the episode.
But Reynolds and McElhenney need not worry. There’s light at the end of the tunnel, provided they’re willing to sink more of their hard-earned dough into the club. According to Harvey, the club’s advisor, “the value that’s coming from the global appeal we’ve been able to create is going to offset those additional costs that we’ve created.”
Harvey added, via People, that “the biggest thing that’s going to change on promotion … people can see the value of Welcome to Wrexham.”
If all goes according to plan, Harvey continued, “that’s when the additional sponsorship revenue can be generated.”
Until then, Pepto-Bismol?
Season 2 covers some incredible milestones for the club, which sees Wrexham AFC winning their first league title in 45 years. That win propelled the club to the EFL’s League Two, the fourth tier. The goal, no pun intended, is for the team to continue climbing the ranks, which would be League One (third tier), followed by the Championship League (second tier) and, the mecca of leagues, the English Premiere League (top tier).
In season 2, the club also welcomes royalty after “the King of England called” and, alongside Queen Camilla, paid the team a visit last December.
Reynolds and McElhenney were photographed shaking hands with the royals and even cracking up at something the king said during the visit.
Later that day, Charles gave a speech acknowledging the visit and the importance of the soccer club.
“I had the opportunity to see one of the other wonders of Wrexham, namely the football club, which is busy putting Wrexham on the map as never before,” the king said. “And, of course, this comes after the Welsh national team has brought unprecedented international recognition to Wales through qualifying for the World Cup.”
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