How Wrexham and Birmingham became global names

Eyes across the globe will be transfixed on proceedings at the Stok Cae Ras on Friday night as Wrexham host Birmingham City in the Championship (20:00 BST).

The pair gained automatic promotion from League One last season and will lock horns again this week in north Wales having enjoyed two hotly-anticipated meetings last term.

The A-listers involved at the top of both clubs will ensure there is just as big a spotlight on those off the pitch as there will be for those on it.

This is the story of how Wrexham and Birmingham became the talk of more than just two communities in the United Kingdom.

Following confirmation of their club takeover in 2021, Rob McElhenney and Ryan Reynolds were quick to aim jibes at Wrexham's local rivals Chester - currently in the National League North, four divisions below Wrexham.

On three occasions, the Hollywood pair wrote "Always beat Chester.*" in their club's mission statement.

The all-important asterisk was used to aim one final dig at Chester - with the statement concluding: "*If we ever play Chester again."

During their rapid surge up the football pyramid, Wrexham enjoyed almighty tussles with numerous sides - Notts County, Stockport County and Sheffield United to name a few.

Their battles with Notts County were nothing short of majestic from a football perspective, although the Stockport and Sheffield United games certainly involved more needle, or beef, so to speak.

Birmingham seemingly find themselves somewhere in the middle, and there was huge attention on the first of two league fixtures between the sides last season.

England icons David Beckham and Gary Neville were among those who joined Wrexham co-owner McElhenney and Birmingham part-owner Tom Brady in the stands as the Blues won 3-1 against Phil Parkinson's side at St Andrews in a match dubbed as the 'Hollywood derby'.

The Red Dragons marginally seemed to have the better of the second fixture later in the season - but could only draw 1-1.

It was, however, ultimately a highly successful campaign for both teams.

The Blues ended 2024-25 as third tier champions with an English Football League (EFL) record of 111 points - with Wrexham taking runner-up spot on 92 points.

The ownership groups have played a significant role in raising the profile of both clubs, particularly in America where interest has boomed.

Birmingham followed Wrexham's lead in creating a behind-the-scenes club documentary - with their version, Built In Birmingham: Brady & the Blues, being launched before the current campaign.

Prominent figures from such documentaries have made this an increasingly eye-catching fixture.

In August, a video featuring Swansea City co-owner Snoop Dogg, Brady and McElhenney grabbed widespread attention online.

The trio took part in a group video chat titled 'Championship owners' in which they discussed their involvement with their respective EFL sides.

Prior to the fixture at St Andrews last season, Brady regaled McElhenney over the latter's reference to the seven-time Super Bowl winner during a scene in his sitcom It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia.

Brady then presented McElhenney with a home Birmingham shirt with the Philadelphia-native's surname emblazoned on the back along with the number 12 - the same one worn by quarterback Brady during his glittering NFL career.

The shirt - signed by McElhenney - was later bought by Blues chairman Tom Wagner who donated the money of the purchase to the Wrexham AFC Foundation.

The whole encounter featured prominently in the latest season of the highly-successful Welcome to Wrexham documentary, further demonstrating the marketing nous of those involved with the clubs.

The build-up to their first meeting 12 months ago featured Parkinson urging his players to be involved in a "controlled tear-up" - with the 57-year-old using plenty of colourful language as part of his speech.

However, it was the Blues faithful who revelled in mocking the Welsh side after their victory - with one fan saying "you're not in the National League any more" and another quipping "welcome to the real world" to Wrexham's documentary-making cameras.

Reach journalist Brian Dick, who regularly reports on the Blues, said: "To me it seems like both ownership groups have recognised the mutual commercial and social media benefits in riffing off each other."

"This summer it seemed every transfer rumour was linking Birmingham and Wrexham with the same players, they were not only rubbing shoulders in the league and on the pitch but off it too," he added.

Throwing forward to this season's meetings, Wrexham's savvy media team utilised the summer fixture release as another means of poking fun at Birmingham.

Announcing their 2025-26 schedule with a video in the style of the introduction to Star Wars, Wrexham labelled the Blues as 'Darth Birmingham City' in a nod to the franchise's villain Darth Vader.

On the face of it, it all seems like healthy rivalry and banter, right?

That certainly appears to be true among the big names associated with the two clubs. But make no mistake, Wrexham and Birmingham possess a ruthless desire to taste further success.

On the back of clinching promotion, Wagner said reaching the Premier League next year "is certainly the goal" for the Blues.

Upon taking control of Wrexham, then in the fifth tier National League, Reynolds and McElhenney said one of their goals was to "establish Wrexham AFC as a Premier League club".

The astonishing off-field work at both the Stok Cae Ras and St Andrews has been crucial in aiding the efforts of those on the pitch.

Wrexham announced a record turnover of £26.7m for the year ending 30 June, 2024 while Birmingham posted a revenue of £29.6m for the same period - a record for a club then in the third tier, albeit the financial year was when they were a Championship side.

It has translated into huge success for both sides, and this season could produce more of the same.

After a somewhat frustrating start, Wrexham have improved of late - earning notable away wins over Millwall and Norwich City while going into the Birmingham fixture having lost just once in eight games across all competitions.

After his side's 1-1 draw with Leicester City - who competed in the Premier League last season - Parkinson said his side were "definitely evolving as a team".

As for the Blues, they have also shown they can compete following their return to the second tier, having gained 11 points from their opening eight league matches.

But when kick-off comes on Friday, it will be a case of business as usual as far as Wrexham midfielder Matty James is concerned.

"The owners are superstars in their own right in different industries, and I think naturally that brings a huge amount of media attention that can sometimes kind of distract you away from what is actually going on," said 34-year-old James.

"I think certainly the outside noise is very, very big. But for us as a group I think when you are at Wrexham, we are kind of used to it a little bit."