Wrexham

Gareth Bale to Wrexham? Hollywood owners make pitch to retired soccer star

Published Apr. 26, 2023 1:40 p.m. ET

WREXHAM, Wales — Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney are making an audacious — and very public — bid to entice Gareth Bale out of retirement to play a season at Wrexham.

Bale, a Wales great who retired after the World Cup at age 33, offered his congratulations to Wrexham’s celebrity owners following the team’s promotion to the fourth tier of English soccer over the weekend.

In a response to Bale’s video message, McElhenney wrote on Twitter: "Hey Gareth Bale let’s play golf, where I totally won’t spend 4 hours trying to convince you to un-retire for one last magical season."

Bale, a passionate golfer in his spare time, replied, "Depends what course..." He also tagged in the R&A, which organizes the British Open from its base at the home of golf in St. Andrews, Scotland.

Reynolds weighed in on Wednesday, tweeting: "I will shave a professional-grade golf course into Rob’s back if you’ll give Wrexham a season."

The pursuit of Bale looks like a long shot, given he is three months into retirement, has never played at such a low level in soccer and would likely command a massive salary. He also was born in Cardiff in south Wales, whereas Wrexham is based in the north of the principality.

McElhenney and Reynolds are dreamers, though. Just look at what they are doing at Wrexham, a club on its knees before the 2021 takeover by the A-listers.

The owners were in tears after Wrexham beat Boreham Wood 3-1 on Saturday to clinch automatic promotion from the National League.

Reporting by the Associated Press.

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