Ryan Reynolds’ Wrexham Falls Just Short of Chance at Premier League Promotion

Wrexham laments falling short of the EFL Championship playoffs

Season 5 of “Welcome to Wrexham” won’t have the triumphant ending of the past three seasons. After becoming the first team in the history of British soccer to earn three consecutive promotions, Wrexham AFC fell just short of a chance to earn a fourth promotion to the Premier League after taking a 2-2 draw against Middlesborough on the final day of the EFL Championship season.

The globally popular Welsh football club pulled out of bankruptcy by owners Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney came into the season finale in sixth place in the Championship standings, which would put it in the final spot for the playoffs. The top two teams at the end of the season get promoted to the Premier League, while teams in third through sixth place face off in a four-team playoff to decide who gets the last spot moving up.

Holding a tiebreaker over league rival Hull City, the goal for Wrexham was simple: win against Middlesborough, which had already qualified for the playoff in fifth place, and they’re in. But Wrexham found themselves behind early after Middlesborough’s Tommy Conway scored within the first five minutes of the match.

Wrexham came roaring back with a pair of goals from forwards Josh Windass and Sam Smith, but Middlesborough tied the game again at 2-2 just before halftime. In the second half, both sides missed scoring opportunities, and the score remained the same while Hull City defeated Norwich City 2-1 to leapfrog Wrexham for the final playoff spot.

It’s a painful ending to a year where Wrexham built themselves into dark horse contenders for promotion in their first season in the Championship since the 1980s, though it came with the sad departure of the team’s injury-stricken star , who became one of the breakout characters of “Welcome to Wrexham.”