Wrexham Association Football Club Women (Welsh: Merched Clwb Pêl-droed Cymdeithas Wrecsam), formerly Wrexham Ladies F.C., is a Welsh semi-professional women's football club that competes in the Adran Premier, the first-tier of women's football in Wales.
During the 2015-16 season, they had a difficult time maintaining a full roster, and withdrew from the Premier League mid-season.[2]
2018–2020: As Wrexham A.F.C. Women
In 2018, they reformed the club as Wrexham A.F.C. Women, joining the North Wales Women's Football League to compete against teams across North Wales. The League was split into 'Division One' and 'Division Two' in North Wales; Wrexham entered the bottom tier as a new club of 'Division Two'. In that 2018 season, Wrexham won the North Wales Women's Division Two league cup, beating Rhyl Development 3–2 in a cup final hosted at Bala Town's Maes Tegid. They finished the season 4th in the league, and gained promotion into Division One.[citation needed]
In the 2019/20 season, the COVID-19 pandemic cut the season short with Wrexham in 8th position in Division One. The Football Association on Wales decided to use a points per game (PPG) calculation to work out the finishing positions for the teams in the league.[citation needed]
2020–2023: New owners, promotion to Adran Premier
In November 2020, Canadian-American actor Ryan Reynolds and American actor Rob McElhenney, through their RR McReynolds Company LLC, bought Wrexham A.F.C.[3][4] Due to the Christmas 2020 second lockdown, the 2020/21 season was canceled with no games being played.[citation needed]
Before the start of the 2021/22 season, the FAW announced a restructure of Women's football in Wales, with a new Tier 2 league split into Adran North and Adran South with specific criteria needed in order to enter. The FAW opened up both tiers to all clubs to apply to join. Wrexham applied for the Tier 2 North, and completed a successful first campaign in that new second tier, finishing runners-up to Llandudno - after losing to the champions in a winner-takes-all game on the final day of the season at Maesdu Park.[citation needed]
On 9 February 2023, Wrexham announced they had applied for a Tier 1 license, and would become semi-professional if promoted to the Adran Premier for the 2023/24 season.[5] They won the Adran North championship trophy on March 26, and earned promotion after winning the playoff game 1-0 against Briton Ferry Llansawel, on April 16 in Latham Park.[6]
2023– present: Adran Premier
On 27 June 2023, the club announced that ten players have signed semi-professional contracts, a first in club history,[7] making them the first Adran Premier team to feature semi-professional players. Cardiff City F.C. did the same on 29 June and Swansea City Ladies F.C. on 16 August. At the start of 2024, they were third in the league with striker Rosie Hughes leading the league in scoring.[8] They finished 3rd and reached the finals of the FAW Women's Cup. The club was granted its first UEFA license in March 2024.[9]