Latest news with #LesReed
The Independent
08-08-2025
- Sport
- The Independent
Forget Ryan Reynolds – meet the man plotting Wrexham's stunning rise to the Premier League
Anticipation is building to a fever pitch ahead of the 2025-26 Championship season, and Wrexham are preparing to play their first match in the compelling and cruel second tier of English football since the 1981-82 campaign. Wrexham have undergone a seismic metamorphosis since being purchased by actors Rob McElhenney and Ryan Reynolds through Wrexham Holdings LLC in November 2020, becoming the first club in the history of England's top five football divisions to achieve back-to-back-to-back promotions. And while there have been several protagonists in that journey, one of the most important instigators in their growth is Les Reed. After a lone managerial spell at Charlton in 2006, Reed rebuilt his reputation at Southampton as head of development, eventually winding up in a surprise role as a football strategy adviser to Wrexham's board in 2021, with the Red Dragons starting their incredible rise through the English football pyramid. 'It was the strangest conversation I've ever had in terms of getting a job and starting overnight,' Reed tells The Independent. 'I got a call from [Wrexham director] Shaun Harvey, who said, 'They want you to look after the business and the football strategy.' I'd worked with Shaun before when he was the CEO at the EFL, so I said, 'Why not?' 'There was one game left in the season after the completion of the buyout, away at Dagenham, and then we had 10 days to come up with the released and retained list of players. He asked, 'Can you get to the game and work on the list?' I'd never seen Wrexham play in the current era, and I didn't know any of their players … I went to the game undercover, and I wasn't impressed.' Reed wasted no time overhauling the squad, reshaping it after manager Dean Keates departed following the expiry of his contract. He spent several days glued to his laptop, poring over footage to decide which players to keep and which to get rid of. After five days, he received another call, asking if he could identify the club's next coach. Reed pushed for Phil Parkinson, a shrewd move: the English coach is still in charge on the eve of their return to the Championship. With the help of the FX docuseries Welcome to Wrexham, the club's brand and financial strength exploded, attracting TikTok as kit sponsor, while their season-ticket sales trebled to more than 5,800 ' Welcome to Wrexham is significantly important because it's made Wrexham a destination club, both for fans and players, but it's also meant that the revenues can be increased in a different way to most clubs,' added Reed. 'You can max out your ticketing, your matchday hospitality, your merchandising and stuff like that. It brings all that to a much wider global audience and allows you to look at other revenue streams that you couldn't have without that. But mainly, it helps Wrexham become sustainable in the long term, which is twofold. 'It means Rob and Ryan don't have to keep putting their hands in their pockets, because we generate those revenues anyway, and, secondly, it works much better in the PSR or FFP regulations, enabling us to reinvest in the squad and players. It helps bring the entire community of Wrexham to life, but also to life elsewhere in the world, where even our pub landlord is a superstar celebrity in the United States. It's done a fantastic job revitalising the community… it's brought the history of Wrexham into people's living rooms.' The Red Dragons finished atop the National League in 2022-23, ending a run of 15 consecutive years outside the Football League. They followed that up by finishing second in League Two, and another runner-up finish in League One last term. But although their meteoric ascent has been no doubt buoyed by a financial affluence that isn't normally afforded to lesser-funded clubs, they've nevertheless done so while also building for the future and ensuring strength and stability for years to come. 'It's about having the right long-term strategy which encompasses initial success,' Reed notes. 'No one will buy into the long term if you're going nowhere in the first three years, so you've got to have these two parallel strands of winning now and winning in the future. 'And to do that, you need to have the right infrastructure. It doesn't necessarily mean bells and whistles training grounds, but the right people in the key jobs to make that happen in a structure where it all fits together and works well together. I've seen mistakes happen where an owner will buy a club and try to turn them around like a merger or an acquisition and get quick wins, using similar strategies to the ones they would use in business and trying to apply them to football. 'There are two entities that make up a football club: the business entity and the sporting entity. Understanding the culture of the game is really important to get your business strategy right. Otherwise, what we see often is business strategy driving change, money spent on this, money spent on that, and then nothing gets better. And then the owner will say, 'I've spent all my money, I'm not spending it any more. I've done enough.' And then the fans get upset because they think the owner doesn't care. So it's really important that the investment comes with a really good sound strategy.' The third-oldest professional football club in the world, Wrexham have prepared for the Championship season with yet another blockbuster squad overhaul. They have splurged a total of £11m on eight new players, including England international defender Conor Coady, Wales striker Kieffer Moore and ex-Nottingham Forest midfielder Lewis O'Brien, players with not just Championship experience but Premier League pedigree as well. It begs the question – just what exactly constitutes a successful 2025-26 season for Wrexham? 'A successful season is one where we build the squad and prove ourselves to be a top-end Championship team in terms of being competitive on the pitch and using that improvement to add requirements to the way we work, prepare, and train,' Reed maintains. 'Our budget across the club is not just sustainable, but it's growing in order for us to act in the January window if we need to kick on, or if we have a really good chance of getting promoted. No one's foolish enough to predict that Wrexham will go up, but we know it's our target.' 'We want to go up, our fans want us to go up, but my experience tells me that you can't just measure success by going up. If we don't go up, then what happens? Does everybody get fired? Do we panic like a lot of clubs would? No, we wouldn't, but we'd want to be in a position to make sure we're stronger next year. 'So success for me would be that we had a real chance of going up, whether that was automatic or through the playoffs. I think we'd be a good playoff team if it came to it, but what we want to be is a team that maintains that competitiveness in another season. Not going up doesn't mean the castle falls down and we are struggling the following year.' Wrexham travel to the south coast and St Mary's on Saturday, to take on a Southampton team who were two divisions above them last season. Now just one promotion away from the Premier League, the fun is just starting for McElhenney, Reynolds and co.
Khaleej Times
02-06-2025
- Business
- Khaleej Times
Hollywood actor Ryan Reynolds owns a football club, you can too
Once the domain of oil tycoons and billionaires, owning a football club is now in vogue thanks to the unlikely takeover of Wrexham FC by Hollywood actors Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney. The pair bought the club for £2 million (Dh9.7 million) in 2021 and have transformed it over a short period of time, with some estimating it's now worth up to £150 million (Dh733million). There are many clubs across the lower leagues of England and Europe available for as little as a few million pounds, making football ownership less of a dream and more of a reality. Les Reed is the founder of Reed Consulting and also a board advisor to Wrexham FC. 'There is a lot of misunderstanding around why people invest in football clubs, and some don't ask themselves that question.' There are many reasons someone might buy a club – as an investment opportunity, to raise a personal profile, ego, to diversify assets, and as a form of fun and entertainment. It could be a combination of all the above. 'But I have never met an investor who did not want return on investment (ROI) in some form and never one that was happy to lose money,' added Reed. Charlie Methven, a former co-owner and executive director of Sunderland FC, said: 'Buyers tend to have made their fortune in other industries and tend to bring a somewhat unwarranted self-confidence to buying a football club despite having no background in football.' He advised buyers to partner with someone who has been through the whole journey before, both to assess the market and to engage in proper due diligence that addresses the particularities of football. England is prime hunting ground, given it has more than 90 professional clubs spread across four divisions. Some are worth billions like the Premier League's Manchester United while others like Cheltenham Town in League Two are valued at just over £3 million. 'There are always clubs for sale. Some owners quietly put their clubs up for sale waiting patiently for the right price, while others become distressed (due to a relegation, or financial difficulties), which can force a sale process,' said Jordan Gardner, a consultant at sports intelligence firm Twenty First Group. Even clubs that appear stable can often be on the market quietly, looking for new investment to secure their future. 'Whether on the open market or not, I suspect that at least 75 per cent of clubs would be open to either a full-sale conversation or, at the very least, a discussion around strategic investment,' claimed Professor Rob Wilson from the University Campus of Football Business. What to look for 'Start with the basics: what's coming in, what's going out, and what's being wasted. Can you grow sponsorship? Is there potential to increase matchday revenue? Have they sold players for profit before? What are the fixed costs and can you afford to cover them until revenue grows?' asks Simon Leslie, a media owner and chairman of Eastbourne Borough FC. When it comes to looking at a football club's finances, experts will analyse revenues (matchday and non-matchday), expenses (specifically player wages) to gauge profit and loss, and cash flow. For smaller clubs, it's useful to drill down into its matchday income, which includes ticket sales and food and beverage sales. It should also include any commercial deals and media rights distributions. Another important source of income is from player trading — revenues derived from selling players in the transfer market. Les Reed said not to forget non-matchday income — from events, concerts, conferences, and tours as the stadium is often underutilised and an area for growth. While revenue and expenses are essential parts of any business, football experts warned not to treat a club as a normal business. 'Your revenues can be unpredictable and reliant on sporting performance, and the landscape is highly competitive both to acquire a club and to be successful,' added Gardner, who is a former CEO of Danish professional football club Helsingør. Assess all existing debts and liabilities at the club and evaluate the value of tangible assets like the stadium and training facilities, plus intangible assets such as player contracts and brand value. Reed's company specialises in due diligence and carefully going over the finances, performances, and staff in great detail. But even then, he admits that football clubs are sporting organisations competing in a game of chance. 'A great business strategy can fail due to a failed attempt on goal, a red card at a crucial moment, hitting the post or missing a penalty, let alone a wrong refereeing decision.' The classic mistake is underestimating how emotionally charged and unpredictable football is. 'Buyers often think in pure business terms or try to appease a fan base through emotionally driven player acquisitions,' added Wilson. 'Another common error is overestimating how quickly success can be bought; sustainable growth takes patience and proper infrastructure.' Making money It may be a shocking figure but only around 10 per cent of football clubs are profitable. But Gardner puts it into context. 'Many clubs aren't trying to be profitable, either because that is not the goal of their owner, or because they have other motivations.' Generally, the clubs that manage their cost basis well (keeping their player wage bills under control) and the clubs that have a strong system of developing and selling players are the most profitable. 'Don't fall in love with the badge until you've opened the books. People get swept up in the romance and forget that most clubs lose money every single month,' added Leslie. 'Football isn't just a business. It's a tribe, a community centre, and sometimes a therapy session all rolled into one,' he joked. Wrexham has proved to be a turnaround story worthy of a Hollywood movie, but there have been plenty of others. Brighton, Brentford, Plymouth Argyle, Leyton Orient, Stockport County, and Luton Town are all considered clubs that were at rock bottom but have been rejuvenated without spending silly money. Leeds United, who are owned by 49ers Enterprises, with minority investment from Red Bull, and a host of celebrities, including Michael Phelps, Russell Crowe and Will Ferrell, have just been promoted back into the Premier League. Methven, who is now the managing director of Mount Pleasant FA in Jamaica, added: 'Obviously, I would say what I did at Sunderland. The club was £160 million in debt and losing £27 million per annum. Four years later, the club was debt free, break-even, and had been promoted, at which point we sold the club at a significant profit.' The Wrexham effect Wrexham has enjoyed huge success on and off the field since being bought by its wealthy Hollywood owners. The club has enjoyed promotion in three successive seasons and its value has increased by more than 50 times. The documentary Welcome to Wrexham has won eight Emmy awards and given the club a global fanbase. Many investors, particularly from North America want to try and replicate its success. 'Unfortunately, the model is extremely difficult if not impossible to replicate as Reynolds and his group have brand, media (via their documentary) and global appeal that others simply don't have,' said Gardner. Wrexham's story does highlight the power of community and fan engagement in the success of the football club. Indeed, community engagement builds loyalty, boosts matchday revenue, and increasingly attracts sponsors who want authentic connections. Think of them as your unpaid marketing team, your brand ambassadors, and your frontline support. Sponsorship Football clubs offer a range of sponsorship deals that include being the main shirt sponsor and billboards around the pitch. This month, Chelsea FC signed a short-term sponsorship deal with DAMAC to appear on the front of its shirts. For smaller clubs, the sponsors tend to be hyper local brands. For example, Wrexham was sponsored by local firm Ifor Williams Trailers before it was replaced by TikTok and then, United Airlines. But in this increasingly digital world, clubs need to catch up. 'Brands no longer just want their logo on a shirt. They want access, content, clicks, and stories. We've built a digital platform with over 365,000 highly engaged followers not just in Eastbourne, but worldwide. Don't think in terms of 23 home games. Think in terms of a 365-day-a-year brand,' advised Leslie. 'Clubs must adapt by enhancing their online presence, engaging with local and global audiences, and offering data-driven insights to attract new potential sponsors,' said Elliot Stroud, chief executive of which links football clubs with investors.
