Thanks in part to being bought by Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenny, Wrexham have become one of the most talked about football clubs in the UK. So let’s take a look back at the history of the team’s badge.
This is the original badge of Wrexham AFC. One of the most surprising things about the original Wrexham AFC badge is that it actually was not on the team’s shirts until the 1960s. Wrexham were not a massively successful club in the first few decades of their existence and so could not afford to put the badge on the shirts.
The badge that you see to the left was the badge of Wrexham AFC when the club was first created in 1864. The badge is actually the Wrexham borough coat of arms from the 1850s. The different elements of the original badge have specific meanings.
The croziers on the badge represent grazing on the land around Wrexham and Wrexham Abbott. The shield with the two Lions on it is from the arms of Wales. The red dragon at the top of the badge should be pretty self-explanatory. It is the Welsh national emblem that sits on top of the club’s old badge.
Not long after the club put the badge onto shirts, the teams hundred anniversary of their first ever match was approaching. The club wanted a new badge to take the club into their second century and wanted to have the input of the fans. So they decided to hold a fan competition to decide the new badge.
Hundreds of fans sent in their designs for the new badge, leaving the club in a difficult position. Eventually they settled on the badge below.
AFC Wrexham current badge
This is the badge that the club decided to use going forwards. It won the newspaper competition, partly because there is a lot of meaning behind the elements of the badge. At the bottom you can see the year that the club was founded, as Wrexham wanted the badge to show the history of the club while still being modern enough to use today. This was originally thought to be 1873, before research found it was even earlier than that.
The green part of the badge is there as green is one of the colours on the Welsh flag. On the green background are the symbols of ostrich feathers which are the symbols of the Prince of Wales, who is currently Prince William. The green is also representative of the forestry and rural areas around Wrexham.
The writing on it says “Ich Dien” which in Welsh means “I serve”. Some have suggested that this could also be derived from “Eich Dyn” which means “Your man” in Welsh. The bottom part of the badge represents the club being in Wales, one of the few teams playing in England’s top leagues from Wales.
The two red symbols holding the football are red dragons which are the symbol of Wales. This also acts as the supporters in today’s arms of Wrexham. The club has also wanted to keep its links to its history and the town, which is what the current badge represents. They have also used special badges in the past.
Wrexham’s special 150th anniversary badge
Back in 2013, Wrexham did reveal that they would be using a special badge for 2014 which would be the teams 150th as a club. The badge which you can see on the left, is the same as the current badge.
The main difference is that the majority of the badge is gold instead of the normal green, red and black. This was to celebrate a massive achievement for the club in their rich history. The badge was revealed at the annual general meeting.
It was only used for one season before Wrexham reverted back to the club’s original badge. It is the first time on record that the club has used a temporary badge like this to celebrate a milestone like reaching 150 years as a club.
Wrexham FC stadium
Wrexham FC have actually got one of the most historic football grounds in all of the UK.
Wrexham’s stadium is the Racecourse Stadium, which has been the club’s home since they were founded. When the club was founded, they immediately started playing games at the Racecourse Ground. It seemed like the club could move away from the ground when rent increases caused them to move.
Wrexham played the 1881-82 and 1882-83 seasons at the Recreation Ground in Rhosddu before moving back to the Racecourse Stadium. The name comes from the fact that the stadium was used for cricket and horse racing in its early days.
The ground was originally one of the biggest in Wales and because of this it hosted Wales’s first home international game in 1877. The Racecourse Stadium has hosted more Wales international matches than any other stadium in the world. It has a huge amount of history in Wales.
The ground began to undergo redevelopment in 1952 when concrete terracing was laid down on the Kop end of the ground which is now the oldest part of the ground. Five years after the redevelopment, the Racecourse Ground saw its largest ever attendance.
33,445 people gathered at the stadium when Manchester United came to town. It was in a fourth round tie in the FA Cup. The Wrexham fans that turned up in their masses were not treated to a great game for the home team. Manchester United ran out 5-0 victors, with no game getting close to the attendance record since then.
The ground has undergone more development since then including the introduction of the Border Stand as well as a new stand on the Mould Road side of the stadium. Much like many modern stadiums, the ground has undergone modernisation to have brilliant facilities and is now a Category 3 stadium. This means it can host international games.
The stadium was purchased by Wrexham AFC in 2022 thanks to investment from their new owners Ryan Reynold and Rob McElhenney.