25 December 2023 , 16:09
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Wrexham now boasts a larger stadium capacity than two Premier League clubs, following the opening of a new temporary stand.
The League Two team, under the ownership of Hollywood stars Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney, has ambitious plans for both on and off the pitch, including a proposed stadium expansion which is set to boost their capacity even greater.
A temporary stand, accommodating 2,309 fans, was unveiled this month at the Racecourse Ground. This was in response to the soaring demand for tickets, fuelled by the global success of Reynolds and McElhenney's Welcome to Wrexham documentary on Disney+.
The stand was opened for the first time on Saturday (December 23) when Wrexham played Newport County.
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The match saw an attendance of 12,095, surpassing the capacities of Bournemouth's Vitality Stadium (11,307) and Luton Town's Kenilworth Road (11,500) in the Premier League. However, the promise of all-new stands by next season made by Reynolds and McElhenney is yet to be fulfilled.
Wrexham initially planned to have a temporary stand ready for the League 2 match against Notts County in late October. This was after Reynolds and McElhenney first promised a brand-new Kop stand by the start of the next season.
However, issues with building a new Kop stand meant their promise of it being ready for the start of next season fell through.
Co-owners Rob McElhenney and Ryan Reynolds seemingly have big plans for the club (PA)Wrexham then considered constructing a temporary end, but they weren't sure if they could fulfil a promise to build that by Dec. 23 either.
This week, Wrexham announced on social media that they've got the licence to sell tickets for the temporary stand, which can hold 2,289 fans. As promised, the stand will be ready to seat fans for Saturday's match against Newport Country, but only at 80 percent capacity.
In a statement that also addressed Kop Stand developments, Wrexham said: "We are making good progress resolving the outstanding matters before the Kop Development can commence, but with a minimum of three months mobilization period before work can start on site, we can now install a temporary stand without negatively impacting the construction program for the Kop."
"The costs of the temporary stand will be greater than generated from ticket sales, but the Board felt the priority was to enable more fans to see the team live and address the frustration some felt that they can't get game tickets. The temporary stand will be priced at £20 for adults, £15 for Over-65s/Under-21s, £9 for Under-18s and £6 for Under-11s."
It is unclear when their new Kop stand will be fully developed.