Why Americans find Welcome to Wrexham so compelling

Those who watched the show on FX or Hulu know that the details of the team itself are only part of the charm. We meet some of the town’s charming characters – pub owners, painters, local supporters. Club volunteers. Everyday regulars whose lives are intertwined with the fortunes of their local football club. The context of the team’s struggles in the early 2000s, the estate trying to sell their home ground and being saved by the Supporters Trust lends great weight to the comeback story.

Beyond being likeable and fun guys, Reynolds and McElhenney seem to genuinely want to do the right thing for the club and the community. His sincere reverence for the club and its supporters gives every success and failure, both on and off the pitch, an emotional punch.

From day one they have been taking steps to improve the club. Hire a new coach and make great signings (for your level). Field substitution. Fight, and eventually succeed, to buy Racecourse Ground and rebuild the abandoned Kop stand. Getting the team added to the FIFA video game. Campaigning for all National League games to be broadcast around the world. Attendance, sponsorships, and merchandise sales also increased.

The work has paid off in more ways than one.

winning always helps

It certainly hasn’t hurt that since the acquisition the team has been doing pretty well. On the pitch, it was the perfect time for storytelling. The 2021/22 season saw Wrexham challenge for promotion, finishing second and losing after extra time in the playoff semi-final. They also reached the FA Trophy final at Wembley, but fell to a close result there as well. It added drama to the initial season and provided a nice hook for the second season.

Wrexham are currently sitting second in the National League again and will no doubt be looking for the automatic promotion place to League Two this season. And they advanced to the FA Cup Fourth Round, with a home clash against Sheffield United later this month.

Whether you’ve been following the club on Twitter, watching live game streams or just enjoying the CliffNotes version of their season on the FX show, Wrexham racking up W has definitely helped people pay attention.

You can’t please everyone

As with almost everything it seems these days, there is rejection of something that is popular. And when it comes to some sensitive American soccer experts and fans, naturally, anything short of domestic soccer becoming popular can be seen as an attack on our league(s) and sport.

“Why do people follow a fifth division Welsh team when they don’t see the team in their own backyard?”

Well, for starters, a Wrexham-type story essentially doesn’t exist in America. National soccer teams have been threatened with relocation, forced to sell by bad owners, and suffered long periods of ineptitude.

And there have even been teams from lower divisions that have risen through the professional ranks, such as the Portland Timbers, Minnesota United and Nashville FC. But each of the nine MLS teams that emerged from the lower divisions bought an expansion team. They were allowed in because they had the money, plus they were located in a major media market that already had at least one American major league sports franchise. His move to the MLS was not due to sporting merit.

There is no place in America for the little

Wrexham has a population of just over 60,000 people. However, if they earn enough, they may be able to find their way into the Premier League on results alone. A city like Wrexham would be banned from joining MLS. For example, US Soccer has Pro League standards for the top flight division where 75% of the teams must be in cities with a population of over 1 million. Plus US Soccer requires a minimum capacity of 15,000 (the Racecourse Ground seats 10,000).

Perhaps the closest equivalent in our soccer system is the history of Detroit City FC.

Starting out as an amateur team in the NPSL, it grew its fan base organically, eventually turning pro in the NISA and then the USL. His fans even became investors in the club, helping to finance and renovate its historic stadium. However, despite being located in a Rust Belt city long past its glory days, Detroit is still a mass market and they had to buy their way up. And despite being very popular for a lower tier club, MLS wouldn’t hesitate to try to squash and replace them. In fact, they’ve already tried it once. A botched 2018 real estate deal disguised as an MLS offer even went so far as to use images of DCFC supporters without their permission.