Wrexham Association Football Club's promotion to League 2 has been nothing short of a fairytale. Now, co-owner Rob McElhenney is setting his sights on the stars, attempting to persuade Welsh football legend Gareth Bale to leave retirement and join the increasingly famous team.
Hollywood actors Rob McElhenney and Ryan Reynolds took ownership of Wrexham AFC in 2020 after the club was put up for sale due to financial difficulties. Since then, the duo has invested over £10 million in the team, which has gone towards repurchasing their home stadium, upgrading it, and signing stronger players.
This investment has paid off handsomely, as Wrexham ended their 15-year promotion drought. The actors have become local heroes in the once relatively unknown Welsh town, which now garners global attention regularly.
The world watched the incredible story unfold through the Disney+ docuseries "Welcome to Wrexham."
As Wrexham's promotion was confirmed recently, the club enjoyed perhaps its greatest media exposure in history, receiving congratulatory messages from around the globe. It seems Tottenham and Real Madrid icon Gareth Bale was also following the club's journey.
Bale sent a video to McElhenney, commending him for Wrexham's National League title and promotion. The "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia" actor shared the video publicly, offering a direct invitation to the five-time Champions League winner.
"Hi Rob, just want to congratulate you on your promotion and everything you're doing at Wrexham," the 33-year-old former Wales captain said, seemingly at a golf course. McElhenney responded with a proposal: "Hey @GarethBale11 let's play golf, where I totally won't spend 4 hours trying to convince you to un-retire for one last magical season."
While it may be a long shot, Bale is known for his love of football in his home country. He faced criticism during his later years with Real Madrid for prioritizing national team duties over his club.
Bale's love for his homeland led to internet memes depicting him saying, "Wales, Golf, Real Madrid in that order."
After finishing his contract with the Spanish giants, Bale had a brief MLS stint with LAFC before guiding Wales to a historic World Cup appearance last year. At 33, he retired from professional football.
With several injuries in his career's latter half, it remains to be seen if Bale has maintained the fitness required for competitive play. However, League 2 is likely to be less demanding than La Liga or MLS.
Should Bale join Wrexham, he would be teammates with former England and Manchester United goalkeeper Ben Foster, who un-retired to play for the club on a minimal salary.
The excitement surrounding Wrexham has also prompted former Wales player Hal Robson-Kanu to consider coming out of retirement to play for the team and donate his wages to charity. The glitz of Hollywood has certainly spread throughout Wrexham, and fans eagerly anticipate their performance in League 2 next season.
