April 17 – Welsh club Wrexham, made internationally famous by their Hollywood owners Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney and the Netflix documentary ‘Welcome to Wrexham’, have signed Gatorade as their official sports drink three days after achieving a second consecutive promotion into the EFL’s League One, England’s third professional tier.
It is a big brand for a big-thinking little club. Wrexham have built a cult following in the US on the back of their ownership star power and the Netflix series.
Reynolds and McElhenney paid £2 million to buy the club in 2021 and since then they have been on a fairy tale run.
Last summer they toured the US and played Manchester United in a friendly in San Diego. This summer they will be taking the “Wrex Coast Tour’ to the US again and will play Chelsea at the San Francisco 49ers’ Levi’s Stadium in July. Their women’s team is also expected to tour the US this summer.
The team has aspirations to reach the Premier League but on a playing budget of about £5 million for next season in a bid to get them into the Championship, it feels like they are still a long way away they are up against. But like all the best stories, it is a continuing drama.
Gatorade is certainly in it for the long run, saying that it is making “its science-backed products and innovations to support Wrexham in the team’s aspirations to reach the Premier League.”
The partnership will debut with next series of ‘Welcome to Wrexham’ which premieres in the US on FX on May 2 where Gatorade has product placement.
“We are incredibly pleased and humbled to welcome Gatorade as an official partner of Wrexham Association Football Club. We are officially pretty darn official! Our decision early on to have Aviation Gin in those water bottles was reckless and shortsighted. Luckily, our team has forgiven us and has gone on to perform admirably, in part thanks to Gatorade! We look forward to a few more Gatorade dunks in the years to come,” said club co-chairmen McElhenney and Reynolds.
On a sporting level Wrexham players will also have access to the resources offered by the Gatorade Sports Science Institute (GSSI), and will participate in sweat testing, where sweat patterns are analyzed by GSSI to inform the development of custom fuel plans. Future plans for the partnership include co-branded merchandise such as exclusive Wrexham Gx bottles and towels.
Michael Del Pozzo, President and General Manager, Gatorade, said: “From the natural integration into ‘Welcome to Wrexham’, to leveraging our products and GSSI’s capabilities to help fuel the teams, this partnership is a first of its kind for Gatorade, leveraging the powerful intersection of sports and entertainment to reach new audiences around the globe.”
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