Vegas party over: Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney axe 8 Wrexham players days after lavish promotion bash

Just days after celebrating their remarkable rise to the Championship with an all-expenses-paid trip to Las Vegas, Wrexham AFC have confirmed that eight players will be leaving the club following the expiry of their contracts this summer, The announcement comes after their automatic promotion from EFL League One to the EFL Championship, marking the club’s first appearance in the second tier of English football since 2004–05.Under the leadership of manager Phil Parkinson, Wrexham have achieved three successive promotions.The latest promotion was sealed on April 13, when Wrexham secured a 6-0 win over Forest Green Rovers at the Racecourse Ground. The victory guaranteed a second-place finish behind Portsmouth in League One, completing a rapid rise that began in 2021–22 when the club was still playing in the National League (fifth tier).Wrexham earned promotion to League Two at the end of the 2022–23 season, before climbing to League One this past season, and now head into the Championship (second tier) for the 2024–25 campaign.This latest step marks their third promotion in four years under Hollywood owners Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney, who took over in 2020 and have backed the club with significant investment and global attention through the Disney+ series Welcome to Wrexham.The released/retained list was made public on May 14,confirms the exit of Steven Fletcher, Mark Howard, Jordan Davies, Sam Dalby, and four academy players: Josh Adam, Harry Dean, Brad Foster, and Liam Hall.Welcome to Wrexham hero, Steven Fletcher, 37, joined in September 2023 and scored 8 goals in 34 appearances across all competitions. The former Scotland international and ex-Premier League striker saw his role reduce toward the end of the campaign. In an Instagram post, he called Wrexham “the most magical club I have ever played at,” adding the decision to leave was “not by choice.”Goalkeeper Mark Howard, 37, departs after three seasons. He made 54 appearances in total, including 10 games this season across the EFL Trophy, League Cup, and League One. He had been the starting keeper during the 2022–23 National League title-winning season before being replaced by Ben Foster and then Arthur Okonkwo. Speaking to Wrexham’s media team, Howard said:“I’ve been given some of the best team-mates I could’ve asked for. I’ll leave with a smile, proud to have helped us take this club to where it belongs.”Jordan Davies, 26, exits after two spells at the club. A former academy graduate and key figure during the club’s non-league years, Davies spent this season on loan at Grimsby Town in League Two. He had been with the senior squad since 2020, scoring over 25 goals in more than 100 appearances.Sam Dalby, 24, also departs after rejecting a contract extension in January. He scored 7 goals in 47 games in 2023–24 and joined Dundee United on loan in March. He had been instrumental in Wrexham's 2022–23 promotion campaign, often coming off the bench behind Paul Mullin.The four released youth players, Adam, Dean, Foster, and Hall, did not make first-team appearances this season.With promotion to the Championship confirmed, Wrexham are expected to bolster their squad significantly. As reported by The Telegraph, the club has made an approach for Fulham captain Tom Cairney, whose contract expires this summer. The 33-year-old midfielder has been with Fulham for nearly a decade, helping them gain promotion to the Premier League multiple times.Wrexham are also anticipated to recruit other high-calibre players to ensure they’re competitive in the second tier. The club’s rise has so far been strategically backed with experienced signings like Ben Foster, James McClean, and Eoghan O’Connell to balance out younger talents like Elliot Lee and Jacob Mendy.The team is expected to report back for pre-season in July, with the 2024–25 Championship season kicking off in August 2025. While surviving the Championship will be the immediate aim, the long-term goal—openly hinted at by the owners—is a push toward the Premier League.Also read: How Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney took Wrexham to £150M and just 46 games away from the Premier LeagueReynolds and McElhenney, who bought Wrexham in 2020 for £2 million, have transformed the club’s profile and infrastructure, including improvements to the Racecourse Ground, global commercial deals, and increased investment in the women’s team, which also secured back-to-back promotions.After Wrexham’s win over Forest Green Rovers, McElhenney posted on X:“We’re not just going to the Championship. We’re going all the way.”Following the promotion, the owners flew the team to Las Vegas for a celebratory trip, mirroring the one they gifted the squad last year after promotion to League Two. The gesture has become symbolic of the club’s bold, big-dreaming spirit.