Wrexham

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Phil Parkinson joked he would switch off his phone while his Wrexham players celebrate a third successive promotion in Las Vegas later this month.

Wrexham finished their League One campaign with a 2-0 win at Lincoln City on Saturday.

Having sent players to the United States following promotion from the National League and then League Two, co-owners Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney promised the squad a third visit to the famous 'Strip' should they secure their place in the Championship for next season.

"We will be going to Vegas. I can't wait. That's the main thing this week," defender Max Cleworth told BBC Radio Wales after his side's 3-0 victory over Charlton Athletic last weekend.

"The lads love it, I can't wait. I don't think I'll sleep until we go."

And manager Parkinson says the carrot of a trip to Nevada's 'Sin City' has given his players an added incentive to achieve success under the ownership of Hollywood duo Reynolds and McElhenney.

"They deserve the trip," he told BBC Sport Wales.

"To create history, and the owners said at the start of the season that they'd go again.

"That's a good target as well during the season, not just getting promotion and what it means to everybody.

"Having that group together next week [in Vegas] will be amazing.

"I'll be turning my phone off. I just want a message when they're all back in the country in one piece and that's all I need to know."

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Phil Parkinson admits it is "fantastic" that Wrexham's final game of the 2024-25 season at Lincoln City is not a high-pressure fixture.

The Red Dragons head to the LNER Stadium on Saturday (15:00 BST) having already secured automatic promotion into the Championship.

The 57-year-old hopes his side can end another memorable season on a high note as they go in search of a third successive victory to end the campaign on a 10-game unbeaten run.

"It's been incredible. The occasion of finishing the job off at the weekend in front of our fans with the atmosphere," he told BBC Sport Wales.

"I said to the lads that it may take a few weeks to be away from it all in the summer for it to actually sink in.

"The lads have really enjoyed a bit of time away, they came back in on Tuesday and they're looking forward to going to Lincoln to finish the season off.

"There's a lot of big pressure games this weekend across the divisions and it's fantastic for us that we're not involved in one.

"We can say that that's a success whilst looking to put in a good performance at Lincoln."

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Mickey Thomas says he has never seen football club owners boasting a better relationship with fans than Wrexham's Hollywood duo Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney.

Wrexham will play in English football's second tier next season for the first time in 43 years after clinching second spot in League One last weekend.

The Dragons have become the first club in the history of England's top five divisions to secure three straight promotions.

Their spectacular run has come following the takeover of the club by Reynolds and McElhenney in 2021, when they were a non-league side.

"What they have done is unique - it's incredible," Wrexham legend Thomas told this week's Feast of Football podcast.

"The transformation from the National League to where they are now is massive and they have done it in the right way.

"I have never seen owners of a football club have the association they have with the players but more so with the fans. The connection is unreal."

Former Manchester United player Thomas, 70, made his name at Wrexham in the 1970s before returning to the club at the back-end of his career, when he famously scored a spectacular free-kick in a shock FA Cup victory over Arsenal.

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The ex-Wales international (above) had not met Reynolds and McElhenney until last Saturday's promotion-clinching win over Charlton, when he was invited to the owners' box and then asked to celebrate on the pitch alongside them afterwards.

"I don't think anyone can really believe what's happened to the football club," Thomas added.

"Everyone wants to go and watch Wrexham. You can't get a ticket these days.

"It's not just Wrexham, it's globally. They have captured the whole universe haven't they? I am sure if you go to the moon, there'd be someone there asking 'how are Wrexham doing?'.

"I didn't see this happening. But what they have done is they have got the right man in charge in Phil Parkinson and the recruitment has been second to none."

As Wrexham prepare to compete with some heavyweight clubs in the Championship next season, Thomas says another promotion is not inconceivable.

"We know they will do well to finish halfway in the Championship or whatever, but you wouldn't put it past them, that they could get automatic promotion next year," he said.

"You might laugh at that, but you never know with these two guys, everything they touch turns to gold."

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Wrexham will hold a promotion party at the Stok Cae Ras on Sunday, 4 May, 24 hours after their final League One game at Lincoln City.

The event will feature live music and Wrexham's end-of-season awards.

The Macron Stand, Wrexham Lager Stand and Stok Cold Brew Coffee Stand will be open for the event, which starts at 13:30 BST, with supporters having to pay £5 to attend.

A stage will be set up on the pitch for Wrexham to present their player-of-the-season prize, along with other men's first-team awards, with players and staff then expected to perform a lap of honour.

Wrexham will compete in the second tier next season for the first time in 43 years.

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Former Wrexham midfielder Waynne Phillips is in no doubt that the club will be active in the transfer market again this summer as they look to challenge for a top-six place in the Championship next season.

Phil Parkinson's team secured promotion to the second tier of English football with a 3-0 win against Charlton Athletic last Saturday.

Wrexham are the first team in the history of English football's top five divisions to claim three successive promotions - but Phillips is not ruling out a fourth.

"The team that played on Saturday, only three of them were in the Wrexham team at the end of last season," Phillips told this week's Coridor Ansicrwydd podcast.

"They've strengthened every summer, and that's what I see them doing again. If you stand still you won't go anywhere.

"There's a good nucleus there, but they need another six to nine new players. And that's what I expect to happen."

Phillips also expects outgoings over the next few weeks, with Paul Mullin and Ollie Palmer among the players he thinks will depart.

Neither forward has played since February, with the duo not even featuring in matchday squads during the League One run-in.

"It will cost them to get rid of a few. I can't see Paul Mullin and Ollie Palmer at the club next season," Phillips added.

"James McClean, Steven Fletcher, Jay Rodriguez and Matty James - can they do it in the Championship again? And will they offer enough to make Wrexham competitive?

"I've said for a long time that Max Cleworth is good enough for the Championship, so are Dan Scarr, Lewis Brunt and Arthur Okonkwo."

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James McClean says Wrexham's owners Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney deserve huge credit for helping the club achieve three successive promotions.

The Hollywood duo were in attendance as Phil Parkinson's side beat Charlton Athletic 3-0 at the Stok Cae Ras to secure a place in the Championship for the 2025-26 season.

"You see it with so many owners, they come in and promise you the world and they don't deliver," McClean told BBC Radio Wales.

"They've (Reynolds and McElhenney) delivered. They deserve all of the credit in the world tonight."

The 36-year-old has been a pivotal figure under Parkinson since joining from Wigan Athletic in the summer of 2023, featuring 88 times in all competitions so far.

And the 103-cap Republic of Ireland midfielder says the current Wrexham squad will go down in folklore for their achievements, given where the club was prior to the arrival of its glamorous owners.

"It's unbelievable. This place was on its knees and went through dark times not so long ago," he added.

"To now see where we've got to and to be a part of that and a part of history is absolutely phenomenal.

"You're in the game to be remembered for something, and now we'll be remembered for this."