Hollywood's impact on lower-league football

WREXHAM'S exploits since being bought by Hollywood stars Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney have helped lift “the bonnet” on lower-league English football and boosted its popularity in the US, former West Ham defender Anton Ferdinand told AFP.

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The 40-year-old, who is now an ambassador for the Hammers, said Wrexham’s climb up the English Football League (EFL) pyramid had “opened people's eyes across the pond on such a great league”.

The Wales-based club have scarcely looked back since Reynolds and McElhenney’s surprise purchase of them for around £2 million in 2021.

Wrexham are just one promotion away from the Premier League after becoming the first club from the top five divisions of English football to secure three consecutive promotions.

Ferdinand has been a keen follower of football in the US since West Ham played in the 2008 MLS All-Star game against a team featuring David Beckham. He cites CBS Sports’ four-year contract to broadcast 250 EFL and League Cup matches a season until the end of the 2027-28 campaign as evidence of the impact Wrexham have had.