Wrexham vs Birmingham: League One's most expensive fixture, live on Sky Sports
Before the arrival of two Hollywood stars and an NFL legend, the only significant history shared between Wrexham and Birmingham was the £1m Blues paid for Bryan Hughes in 1997 that remains the Welsh side’s record transfer fee received.
Wrexham, owned by actors Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney, are now locked in a promotion tussle with leaders Birmingham, who are powered by the funds of American businessman Tom Wagner and seven-time Super Bowl winner Tom Brady.
Jay Stansfield's double helped Birmingham to a statement victory over Wrexham at St Andrew's in September, but with five points separating the two sides, there is an even greater importance on the return fixture.
The celebrities are expected to be in the stands again at the Racecourse Ground on Thursday evening, live on Sky Sports, and there will be well-paid stars on the pitch too for the most expensive League One fixture in history.
Wrexham have won consecutive promotions from the National League with costly yet clever recruitment. Since 2021, when Reynolds and McElhenney took over, their squad value has increased nearly six times according to Transfermarkt.
Their success has stemmed from signing players from higher divisions, laying the foundations in 2021-22 when they were still a non-league club by adding 10 players from the EFL. The following summer, after missing out on promotion in the National League play-offs, they signed seven more.
"We've brought players in who are used to the expectation of winning," Wrexham boss Phil Parkinson told Sky Sports. "There are expectations at Wrexham and you've got to be able to handle that.
"This is a different club to be at."
Paul Mullin's impact as one of those signings has been well documented but it's the likes of striker Ollie Palmer, who reportedly joined for £300,000, and Elliot Lee, who dropped three divisions from Championship side Luton, that continue to play a pivotal part in their rise.
Palmer has scored only 11 league goals in his last 64 appearances but there is a reason why Parkinson keeps playing him. The 33-year-old is a battering ram that wears down the opposition defence, links play and is the ultimate team player. Only twice this season has he lasted 90 minutes.
Lee, a diminutive midfielder who started his career at West Ham, has a knack of scoring important goals, netting 15 in his first season and then 16 last term. He has six this season and five have come in victories.
Then there are the likes of former Derby striker Jack Marriott and ex-Premier League duo Steven Fletcher and James McClean who all signed before Wrexham had kicked a ball back in League Two.
Wrexham invested again last summer paying fees for five players, who have collected five EFL promotions between them, to a reported total of £2m, including a supposed club-record sum of £500,000 for West Brom's Mo Faal, who has only made seven league appearances this season.
Wrexham lost £5.1m during the 2022-23 season which ended in the club being promoted back to League Two. It means in their first two full seasons under Reynolds and McElhenney the club has lost over £8m. The accounts for up to June 2024 will be released this spring.
The wage bill increased from £4.05m in the 2021-22 season to £6.9m as they clinched the National League title while overall turnover rose from £5.97m to £10.47m.
The impact of the Welcome to Wrexham documentary on the club's global profile saw retail rise from £1.3m to £3.4m with the club pocketing £2.58m of the total revenue from overseas.
The eye-watering losses, though, are predicted to fall now that the new ownership is in its fourth year. Turnover has reportedly increased significantly in the last 12 months with the club said to expect total revenue to surpass £20m after landing lucrative sponsorship contracts with United Airlines and SToK Coffee Brew.
Wrexham also welcomed the Allyn family, who made their fortune through Welch Allyn, the global manufacturer of medical equipment, as new minority investors in October.
The Racecourse Ground, where Thursday's showdown will take place, has a capacity of 13,341.
Wrexham's average attendance has been 12,869 this season - the fifth highest in League One - with nearly every match a sell-out. Their average total would place them third-bottom in the Championship's attendance table.
The club has plans to redevelop the 5,500-capacity Kop which was demolished in January 2023, having been unused and abandoned since 2007, and replaced with 3,000 temporary seats.
A new architect - Populous - who have worked on the likes of Wembley, the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium and the Principality Stadium, has been appointed to redesign the stand that was originally scheduled to open in time for this season.
It will include provision for safe standing, hospitality and accessible seating and be fully compliant with UEFA Category Four stadium requirements with a targeted completion date of 2026. McElhenney has spoken of raising the capacity to 50,000.
While Wrexham have been building, Birmingham are rebuilding following relegation from the Championship. Their takeover in the summer of 2023 led to an unexpected setback which has not dented their ambition.
Along with a £58m cash injection, the new owners have plans to build a new stadium after buying 60 acres of land around a mile from St Andrew's.
Birmingham showed their intent last summer too, signing 13 first-team players for a reported total of £20m and smashing the League One transfer record by signing striker Stansfield for more than £15m from Fulham.
The 21-year-old forward was on loan at the club in 2023/24, scoring 13 goals and providing three assists in all competitions, and has netted 12 league goals in 21 appearances this term.
Alfie May, League One's golden boot winner last season, came in from Charlton for an undisclosed fee and has 10 goals, as did goalkeepers Ryan Allsop and Bailey Peacock-Farrell and a player from each of Celtic, Hearts and Rangers.
Blues did cash in on academy product Jordan James, selling him for reportedly £8m, and manager Chris Davies has warned Wrexham that his side is more settled now than when they first met.
"We were a team just forming at the time," Davies told Sky Sports. "We've come a long way since then."
Birmingham are unbeaten in their last 14 matches across all competitions, winning 12, since suffering a shock defeat at Shrewsbury in the league.
But Davies has ruled out Seung-Ho Paik and Willum Willumsson of the Wrexham meeting and they are also expected to be without midfielder Tomoki Iwata. The trio have all been regulars.
Wrexham, meanwhile, could be without McClean after he was involved in a car crash on his way to training on Wednesday morning.
The hosts were beaten at Shrewsbury last time out and have lost two of their last three which has seen them lose ground on both Wycombe and Birmingham.
Something has got to give.
Watch Wrexham vs Birmingham live on Sky Sports Main Event and Football from 7pm on Thursday; kick-off 8pm
