Wrexham Seeks Progress Amid Stadium Developments and Draw Against Watford
Wrexham’s quest for improvement continues as they faced a challenging 1-1 draw with Watford, leaving fans eager for more from the new Championship season. The racecourse ground witnessed high aspirations as a symbol of the club’s ambition, the towering £70 million Kop stand currently under construction loomed large over the venue and the city itself.
Despite the stand not being completed and fans absent from the new section, it offered a glimpse into Wrexham’s promising future as players and supporters gathered for the season opener. Chief executive Michael Williamson described the development as an “exciting” emblem of hope.
Ownership duo Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney were present, taking note of the significant progress made throughout the summer months, with hopes that the stand will be ready for opening in a prospective Premier League environment. The ambition is to nearly double the capacity of the 164-year-old stadium and fulfill top-level stadium criteria.
Currently, the construction has meant no fans could gather behind the goal during the match against Watford, leaving manager Phil Parkinson contemplating possible transfers ahead of Birmingham City’s visit. The Kop represents more than just construction; it’s a reflection of the swift advancements being made by the club since Reynolds and McElhenney took control in 2021, when the old Kop had been left abandoned for over a decade.
The Racecourse has undergone significant transformation as the new stand emerges, resembling visions associated with grand stadiums like Wembley and the Las Vegas Sphere. Midfielder Ollie Rathbone expressed excitement about the rapid progress, seeing the structure as a symbol of the club and town’s thrilling period.
Reynolds and McElhenney’s commitment to building on last season’s near playoff opportunity indicates their willingness to invest further. The club aims for sustainability while capitalizing on the surge of interest generated by its owners’ US-showcased documentary. Season ticket sales have reached capacity, highlighting the increased fan engagement.
The new Kop will accommodate around 7,500 additional seats, surpassing a total capacity of 18,000, larger than many current Premier League venues. Plans for new facilities include improved dressing rooms, enhanced media areas, and a fan plaza adjacent to the railway station, marking a gateway to the city.
Williamson noted the swift advancements made on site, indicating that the structural foundations are in place, bringing clarity to the impressive scale of the stand. Fans were able to observe the substantial construction, including a giant steel truss set for an LED screen showcasing a three-dimensional fan experience.
Parkinson shared his anticipation for the stand’s completion, emphasizing the potential for current players and supporters to benefit from the developments. While a few fans may see the new stand before the season concludes, full operations will likely begin next term, pending Wrexham’s success on the pitch.
Drawing from the match against Watford, Parkinson reminded fans that the team stands two points ahead compared to the same stage last season, reinforcing the objective to continue building on Wrexham’s potential. The growing Kop is a clear representation of the club’s determination for future success.
Two games, two draws. Something to build on for Wrexham.
The need for further transfer business loomed large over the Racecourse following the 1-1 draw with Watford that frustrated fans on the first home afternoon of the new Championship campaign.
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But, dominating the skyline of the ground – and the city – a towering, tangible reminder of the scale of the ambition at the north Wales club.
The new £70m Kop stand is still lacking fans, still not completed, but the concrete and steel shape of an exciting future was obvious when both players and fans took their positions for the first fixture of the season at their changing north Walian home.
“It’s exciting because it’s a real symbol of hope ahead,” said chief executive Michael Williamson.
A-list owners Ryan Reynolds and Rob Mac were in attendance to cast an eye over the development that has moved apace over the summer months in preparation for full opening next season.
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The aim will be that it opens in a Premier League environment, to match the elite-level spec of the stand that will come close to doubling the 164-year-old venue’s current capacity, as well as ticking off a number of top-level stadium criteria.
It is still some way off, with the ongoing building meaning no fans were behind the goal that Wrexham attacked in vain against Watford, and left manager Phil Parkinson pondering if more transfer business can be done before this Friday’s visit of Birmingham City. The Kop is not the only thing still building at Wrexham.
But, as Reynolds cast a pre-game eye at the structure that already dwarfs the rest of the Racecourse – despite having not yet been topped out – it was a reminder of the strides being made in double-quick time.
When the celebrity pair completed their now infamous takeover of non-league Wrexham in 2021, the ground’s old Kop stood abandoned.
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Once home to the most loyal and vocal of supporters, it had been condemned and out of bounds for fans for more than a decade.
The Racecourse’s iconic Kop stood empty for more than a decade before its demolition in January 2023 [Rex Features]
With Reynolds previously describing the Racecourse as “a church”, and both owners always keen to link the club’s revival with the fortunes of the city itself, there was never a chance that an out-of-town stadium was going to be preferred to enhancing what was already there.
It might have been easier, if more expensive as Friday’s visitors Birmingham and their own US-ownership with their £3bn plans for a new ground will testify.
Even still, planning has been painstakingly slow, and initial building work was not straightforward.
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But, designed by the company behind Wembley and the Las Vegas Sphere, the vision presented on paper two years ago is now taking shape.
“Now you can actually see a physical thing up behind the goal, I think it’s a reminder just how quickly the club is progressing,” said midfielder Ollie Rathbone.
“It’s like a symbol of how exciting this period has been for the club and for the town and how it’s hopefully not going to stop and it’s just going to keep getting bigger.”
That is the aim, certainly for Reynolds and Mac who are willing to green-light further spending to try and see Wrexham go one better than last term, when they missed out on the play-offs on the final day of the season.
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Their turbo-charged run to this point has been backed by big budgets but not to the level where money can be thrown at a vanity project.
Indeed, an urge for sustainability – and to capitalise on the surge in interest in Wrexham – is behind the plans.
Season tickets are maxed out with very few tickets available on general sale, certainly not for the increasing number of overseas fans who come to Wrexham having become fans of the US-screened documentary created by the entrepreneurial actor owners.
A boost of around 7,500 extra seats will help to take the overall capacity past 18,000 (bigger than both Brentford and Bournemouth currently), while significant new hospitality offerings also offer crucial new sources of income.
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Further developments are not being ruled out for the rest of the ground, something built into the new Kop’s design, with a 30,000 future a real possibility.
Build it, and they will come, as Hollywood once said.
Then there are the new facilities. The dressing room areas and tunnel will move to the Kop end of the ground – closer to the Turf pub from where players originally changed and ran onto the field – with Parkinson and sports science staff having a say in the new layout.
And new media facilities will also be housed, not to mention a fan plaza next to the railway station as part of the gateway to the city.
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“This time last year it was a just a dirt lot,” added Williamson, who previously spent time at Inter Milan during their renovation of the San Siro.
“Now you see the steelwork, the foundations in place. It’s moving along very quickly. For the first time, people are seeing how massive a stand it is going to be.”
It is no exaggeration, certainly when in comparison to the rest of the Racecourse which retains some of the lower-league feel of the club’s previous standing.
Against Watford, eagle-eyed fans would have spotted the giant steel truss that is set to house an LED screen almost 7 metres tall and 18 metres wide.
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“Everyone’s been waiting a long time for the development of the Kop and now, over the last six months or so, we’ve all seen it emerging out of the ground,” said Parkinson, who could not help but catch a glance of some of the 1,500 tonnes of steel on display as he had a pre-match stroll.
“It’s very impressive. We’re pleased at the progress of that and it’s going to be amazing when we’ll be able to get supporters into it.”
There is a possibility a small number of fans could be squeezed into the new stand before the current season is out, although it will only be next term that it will be fully operational with all its bells and whistles.
Whether that will be in the Premier League depends on if Wrexham can get it right on the pitch. The foundations are there, with Parkinson quick to remind after the Watford draw that the side are two points better off than at the same stage last year.
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But the ambitions are clear, summed up by the growing stand that sums up Wrexham’s bid to keep on building.
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