It is quite unusual for a lower-tier club in the UK to be the talk of the town in soccer circles. Save lower-tier clubs, even the English Premier League clubs, apart from the ‘top six’ clubs rarely attract immense attention. However, Wrexham AFC, despite playing in the lowest tier of English soccer- the EFL League Two has been immensely attracting eyeballs. Obviously, it is the club’s owners from Hollywood, Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney, who have triggered this popularity. Anyhow, not everyone is happy with this attention Wrexham has been getting.

English soccer club Crystal Palace’s former chairman Simon Jordan has openly said Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney have just made an ailing Welsh club popular, and he cannot attribute anything more than the duo merit. Jordan’s words interestingly prompted Peterborough United chief Darragh MacAnthony to differentiate between jealousy and envy.

MacAnthony sides with Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney, exposing people’s jealousy

Wrexham and their Hollywood owners were the talking point in a recent talkSPORT episode. Darragh MacAnthony, an EFL League One club’s chairman is not so happy with Wrexham getting more media attention than other lower-tier clubs in the UK. However, he did not shy away from appreciating Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney for innovatively funding Wrexham. Simon Jordan’s comments on the duo were played during the episode. He said that Reynolds attracts all the attention, and “the other fellow carries his bag,” referring to McElhenney. “I don’t agree with some he[Jordan] says. I think people look at them[Rob and Ryan] and there’s a lot of jealousy. I’m not saying Simon is jealous of them,” said Darragh MacAnthony.

The Peterborough chief also said it is better to be envious than to be jealous. “I hate jealousy, it’s an evil thing but I don’t mind being envious of someone else or people being envious of me – envy is healthy,” he added. Then, he lauded the Wrexham owners for funding the club by selling documentaries, striking new partnership deals, and so on. Anyhow, the jealousy towards Wrexham, if any, is no surprise.

The club has recorded north of $10.5 million in revenue- the highest for a National League club. Furthermore, the Red Dragons have outspent other League Two clubs, thanks to mega sponsorship deals. Meanwhile, MacAnthony has given a clean chit for McElhenney who controversially aims to produce a documentary on doped athletes.

MacAnthony is okay with McElhenney producing an enhanced games documentary

Rob McElhenney is reportedly planning to do a documentary on enhanced games, where every athlete is allowed to dope. Additionally, the documentary team is auditioning 10 athletes to dope and partake in games for the documentary. MacAnthony was asked if McElhenney’s involvement in the production would strip his dignity as a soccer club owner. “I can’t judge Rob McElhenney for doing what he’s doing. He is in the entertainment industry to make money. He’s a producer as well as an actor. I don’t think that puts him in a bad light as an owner,” said MacAnthony.

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There will always be two sides to Wrexham’s popularity and Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney’s business interests. But one cannot argue whether Wrexham has been successful under the Hollywood duo or not. A year after ending a 15-year exile to feature in the EFL League Two, Wrexham is now close to a consecutive promotion to the EFL League One. These are reasons enough for jealousy and envy towards the Hollywood duo.

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