Welcome to Wrexham is the tale of two friends who scrape money together to buy a down on its luck football club — in Wales.
Okay, the two friends are Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney so “scrape” is probably a stretch for two successful actors. But the rest is true! They really did buy a Welsh football team called Wrexham A.F.C. that plays in the fifth division of English football. We called season one a “real-life version of Ted Lasso” in our preview and by the end of the 18-episode first season, we were left wanting more.
Luckily, we are getting exactly that. Not too long after the season one finale aired Reynolds and McElhenney announced that a season two was confirmed and in the works. So read what to expect and when to expect it, then head over to Hulu (or Disney Plus outside of the U.S.) and binge-watch the entire first season if you haven’t already.
Welcome to Wrexham: How to watch Wrexham A.F.C. play
Being in the National League, Wrexham's games are typically tough to find, though the National League has now launched National League TV (opens in new tab) thanks in part due to pressure from McElhenney and Reynolds. Check it out if you are interested in streaming Wrexham games.
Welcome to Wrexham season 2 release date speculation
While the second season was announced via Ryan Reynolds on Twitter (opens in new tab) just one week after the first season ended on October 12, 2022, we don’t have a release date yet.
In fact, we technically don’t even know what the second season will cover. The first season covered Reynolds and McElhenney buying the club in September 2020 all the way up to the end of the 2021-2022 season in late May 2022. Expectations are that this second season will be a bit shorter, covering just the 2022-2023 season, which ends in early June 2023 at the latest.
If that’s the case, expecting the show to start in late August 2023 wouldn’t be out of the question. The first season debuted on August 24, 2022, so there’s already precedent for adhering to that timeline.
Welcome to Wrexham season 1 recap
Editor’s Note: Spoilers for Welcome to Wrexham season one ahead
The first season of Welcome to Wrexham starts with Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney partnering up to buy Wrexham A.F.C. — the third-oldest football club in the world. Unfortunately, despite its prestigious history, Wrexham had been mismanaged into oblivion, a.k.a. The English National League.
Enter McElhenney, who between the documentary series Sunderland Til’ I Die and the encouragement of his Mythic Quest writer’s room companion Humphrey Ker, found himself wanting to own a football club. McElhenney, while incredibly successful due to his show It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, wasn’t movie star successful — or movie star wealthy. So he reached out to Reynolds and after maximum effort, the gang bought a football team.
The rest of the season focus on what happens once Reynolds and McElhenney own the club. They have to bring in front office staff and coaches and fix the grounds, all of which takes incredible effort and money. Adding real stakes to the venture, the pair will actually lose money every season the club fails to get promoted to the next tier of the English football pyramid — the English Football League Two.
In the end, Wrexham goes on a Cinderella run. Reynolds and McElhenny take the team from 20th prior to their takeover to 8th in just one season. Then, in the 2021-2022 season, they make it all the way to 2nd place, earning a spot in the National League promotion playoff. But ultimately they fall just short. Wrexham falls to Grimsby Town in a brutal playoff loss and loses a chance at silverware in the FA Trophy final against Bromley. Still, the club — and the town of Wrexham itself — have never felt more hopeful.
Welcome to Wrexham season 2 rumored storylines
Editor’s Note: Potential spoilers for Welcome to Wrexham season two ahead
The good news is that, as of this writing, we have no idea how season two of Welcome to Wrexham will end. In fact, we likely won’t know until the 2022-2023 season ends in late May/early June 2023.
But initial signs are that it will largely be a season of roaring highs — though not without drama. As of this writing, Wrexham A.F.C. sits first in the National League table, three points ahead of Notts County in the standings with a game in hand. Wrexham will need to hold off Notts County if they want to avoid the promotion playoff and prevent a repeat of last year’s soul-crushing playoff defeat.
Plus, the National League isn’t the only competition. The FA Cup and FA Trophy will almost certainly take up some of the screen time in season two. Unfortunately, Wrexham is now out of both competitions after a pair of heartbreaking losses.
We may also see some games from the Wrexham AFC Women, including a thrilling 6-0 thrashing of CPDM Y Felinheli (opens in new tab) that saw one Wrexham player score four goals. In fact, McElhenney all but confirmed via tweet that the Wrexham AFC Women will make an appearance in season two. Makes a lot of sense given that the Wrexham Women just won the Genero Adran Noth league (opens in new tab).
A Royal visit to the Racecourse Ground this morning🔴⚪ #WxmAFC | 📸 @GTPhotography_1 pic.twitter.com/AK4tZdRSsFDecember 9, 2022
And it wouldn't be a TV show without a special cameo. In Welcome to Wrexham season two, we could see the royal family visit the Racecourse Ground — specifically King Charles III and Camilla, the Queen Consort. Most likely their visit won't take up much of the season, or even an episode, but it will certainly be interesting to see Reynolds and McElhenney handling such a high-profile visit.
Unfortunately for Wrexham fans, the off-field drama regarding the stadium continues in the background. Wrexham was denied funding from the U.K. government (opens in new tab) to rebuild "The Kop," an end of the stadium that has been planned for renovation. The club is also still awaiting the Wrexham Supporters Trust to surrender the lease to the Racecourse Ground (opens in new tab) stadium back to the club, which is sure to generate some tension.
Finally, Wrexham is coming to the U.S. According to Wrexham A.F.C podcast RobRyanRed (opens in new tab), Rob McElhenney has confirmed that a U.S. tour is coming in the summer of 2023 and Wreham will also separately be competing in a separate 7-a-side tournament (opens in new tab) with a team made up of club legends — including "personalties [sic] seen in Welcome to Wrexham."
These are now confirmed to be separate tours, as McElhenney and Reynolds have announced via Twitter (opens in new tab) that the Wrexham first team will be taking on Premier League giants Manchester United in a summer friendly at San Diego's Snapdragon stadium. The match is slated for July 25, 2023.
At one point, there were rumors that McElhenney and Reynolds would be two of the members (opens in new tab) of Wrexham's 7-a-side squad. However, this rumor has since been debunked (opens in new tab) by the tournament organizers.
While this U.S. summer tour storyline probably won't make it into the show until season three, those who buy a ticket may find themselves in the stands in a future episode.
Even if the U.S. tour doesn't make it into season two of Welcome to Wrexham, America will almost certainly make an appearance. Wrexham's fourth-round FA Cup fixture against Sheffield United took place on the same day as the Philadelphia Eagle's NFC Championship game, so It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia star McElhenney stayed stateside to watch Wrexham at an Eagles tailgate (opens in new tab) while Reynolds went over to Wales to put in an appearance in the owner's box.
Welcome to Wrexham season 2 cast
As a documentary, the cast for Welcome to Wrexham depends on real-life events, who consents to be interviewed, etc. We can assume that Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney will return, as well as several members of the team. The show will likely also continue to feature members from its community of supporters.
Billed cast from Welcome to Wrexham season one who are likely to return in season two:
- Rob McElhenney, Wrexham A.F.C. co-owner and famous TV star
- Ryan Reynolds, Wrexham A.F.C. co-owner and famous Deadpool
- Humphrey Ker, Wrexham A.F.C. executive director and Rob McElhenney’s colleague
- Fleur Robinson, Wrexham A.F.C. chief executive
- Shaun Harvey, Wrexham A.F.C. advisor to the board
- Phil Parkinson, Wrexham A.F.C. manager
- Paul Mullin, Wrexham A.F.C. player
- Jordan Davies, Wrexham A.F.C. player
- Aaron Hayden, Wrexham A.F.C. player
- Ollie Palmer, Wrexham A.F.C. player
