Wrexham’s rise is no longer a fairy tale – now they want the Premier League

Wrexham’s rise is no longer a fairy tale – now they want the Premier League

Wrexham head into the final round of Championship fixtures this weekend sat in the play-off spots after another extraordinary season in a rise that has already made history.

For CEO Michael Williamson, the club’s trajectory is built on more than hype and momentum alone, but that has certainly played its part.

Central to that ambition is a belief instilled by Holywood owners Rob McElhenney and Ryan Reynolds.

“We can be ambitious but kind,” Williamson said speaking to Hayters at Soccerex last year. “Why can’t we be in the Premier League?”

He pointed to the moment that belief was first made public.

“That’s the beauty of Rob Mac, who came in on his first day, he was meeting fans and some of the local press and makes a comment that we’re going to go to the Premier League, and that’s when they’re in the National League,” he said. “Everyone’s thinking this American that came across here doesn’t have any idea what’s going on here, and here we are four years later and we’re in the Championship.

“It’s amazing what you can do when you have a little bit of momentum, some confidence, some continuity, and  a community and a squad that doesn’t believe in anything else but winning.”

Wrexham’s three consecutive promotions from the National League to the Championship remain unprecedented in English football, and Williamson was quick to underline the scale of that achievement.

“We’ve had back-to-back-to-back promotions, three consecutive promotions up the pyramid, coming from National League football all the way up to now playing in the Championship, and that’s never been done in the history of English football before,” he said. “It’s really, really difficult to achieve that.”

The success on the pitch has been matched by the club’s global profile, driven in part by the Welcome to Wrexham documentary, which has introduced the club to millions of new supporters.

“It’s captured the hearts and minds of millions of fans worldwide,” Williamson said. “But they’re not fans of just football, they’re fans of a community and the stories of the people in that community that resonates with them.”

That connection to the town remains central to Wrexham’s identity, even as they edge closer to the Premier League.