Wrexham's new stand a £2 million game-changer for the club
Wrexham's new Kop Stand, a £70m development, is a tangible reminder of the club's ambition, with a towering structure dominating the skyline of the ground and the city.
The new stand, which will increase the 164-year-old venue's capacity to over 18,000, is still lacking fans, but the concrete and steel shape of an exciting future was obvious when both players and fans took their positions for the first fixture of the season at their changing home.
"It's exciting because it's a real symbol of hope ahead," said chief executive Michael Williamson.
The new stand, designed by the company behind Wembley and the Las Vegas Sphere, is a symbol of how quickly the club is progressing, according to midfielder Ollie Rathbone.
"It's like a symbol of how exciting this period has been for the club and for the town and how it's hopefully not going to stop and it's just going to keep getting bigger."
The stand, which will feature an LED screen almost 7 metres tall and 18 metres wide, is a crucial new source of income, with significant new hospitality offerings also on the way.
The new facilities, including dressing room areas and tunnel, will move to the Kop end of the ground, closer to the Turf pub from where players originally changed and ran onto the field.
And new media facilities will also be housed, not to mention a fan plaza next to the railway station as part of the gateway to the city.
"This time last year it was a just a dirt lot," added Williamson, who previously spent time at Inter Milan during their renovation of the San Siro.
The £70m development is being funded in part by an £18m grant, with A-list owners Ryan Reynolds and Rob Mac willing to green-light further spending to try and see Wrexham go one better than last term, when they missed out on the play-offs on the final day of the season.
Their turbo-charged run to this point has been backed by big budgets, but not to the level where money can be thrown at a vanity project.
Indeed, an urge for sustainability – and to capitalise on the surge in interest in Wrexham – is behind the plans.
Season tickets are maxed out with very few tickets available on general sale, certainly not for the increasing number of overseas fans who come to Wrexham having become fans of the US-screened documentary created by the entrepreneurial actor owners.
A boost of around 7,500 extra seats will help to take the overall capacity past 18,000, while significant new hospitality offerings also offer crucial new sources of income.
Further developments are not being ruled out for the rest of the ground, something built into the new Kop's design, with a 30,000 future a real possibility.
Wrexham's season aim is to fine-tune and get a clear target, with the new stand a crucial part of their plans.
Manager Phil Parkinson is still pondering if more transfer business can be done before this Friday's visit of Birmingham City, but the new stand is a reminder of the strides being made in double-quick time.
As Reynolds cast a pre-game eye at the structure that already dwarfs the rest of the Racecourse – despite having not yet been topped out – it was a reminder of the strides being made in double-quick time.
The new stand is expected to open in a Premier League environment, to match the elite-level spec of the stand that will come close to doubling the 164-year-old venue's current capacity.
Source: Yahoo Sports