An American family who netted $2 billion from the sale of their business have shared why they opted to invest in Wrexham rather than new Premier League champion Liverpool. The Allyn family, hailing from Skaneateles in upstate New York, owned medical device company Welch Allyn for over 100 years before selling it in 2015.
In October, it was announced that the family had bought a minority stake in Wrexham, which is co-owned by Hollywood stars Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney. Kaleen Allyn, who manages the family’s private investment portfolio, took on the role of executive director at the club in January, bringing her Wall Street experience to the table.
She has now revealed that they initially considered investing in several Premier League clubs before settling on Wrexham. As Liverpool was celebrating its 20th league title at Anfield over the weekend, Kaleen and her father Eric were on the pitch at the Racecourse Ground with Reynolds and McElhenney, cheering on Phil Parkinson’s team’s promotion to the Championship from League One.
Speaking to The Athletic, Allyn explained that it was Wrexham’s community focus that ultimately swayed their decision to invest in the Welsh club. Back home, her family is involved in numerous philanthropic initiatives aimed at combating poverty and enhancing people’s lives.
She recounted how their interest in football ownership started, noting: “I got a call from someone I’d worked with a long, long time. They knew our family story for the last 20 years and said: ‘Have you ever thought about investing in football?’. I was thinking: ‘Buffalo Bills? I don’t want to invest in football’. Even though my family love the Buffalo Bills.
“He said, ‘No, no, no. I mean English football’. So, we started to look into this. We looked at some Premier League-level teams but you become a fraction-of-a-fraction owner. You are a small, small investor. You don’t have a lot of power. You can’t really engage.
“I explained this wasn’t really compelling to us. He replied: ‘No, Kaleen, think lower down in the pyramid’. I’m thinking, ‘Surely lower down means more risk’. I don’t know if I can look my family in the face and say: ‘Hey, this is going to be a great investment and be safe’.
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“He just said: ‘I can’t give you their names at the moment but you do need to speak to these people I have in mind, please trust me’ – and that’s how I got introduced to Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney.”
Allyn had not seen Welcome to Wrexham, the hit documentary series following the journey of the celebrity owners of the club, yet she was struck by their ambitious plans for both the football club and the community. On the other hand, Eric had made a discreet trip to Wrexham without her knowledge and they both quickly became enamored with the city after experiencing a warm reception from its passionate fans.
The decision to invest in Wrexham was made swiftly, leading to the creation of a joint venture with Reynolds and McElhenney called Red Dragon Ventures LLC. The exact proportion of the Allyns’ ownership in the club remains undisclosed, but their involvement has been marked by several significant share sales.
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Allyn expressed her enthusiasm for the hands-on aspect of her role at Wrexham, which encompasses supporting the growth of the Wrexham AFC Foundation and the club’s academy. She also highlighted the importance of ensuring the club’s sustainability amid its rapid ascent through the leagues.
She remarked: “Even when we were looking at other clubs, we were, like: ‘We want to be true partners with whoever we work with’. Yes, Liverpool is an amazing club and when we were looking at that, we were, like: ‘This could be a great opportunity’ but this isn’t what we want.
“We want to be true partners and get our hands dirty; be part of the story of what’s happening. That’s the biggest honour. Everyone is so excited to move fast with these back-to-back-to-back promotions but do it in a way that you’re not just trying to get this to the highest point and then watch it fall back down.
“We want to have sustainable, long-term growth. It’s been great Phil has been able to create a team that’s gone back-to-back-to-back, and the management’s job now is to make sure this is sustainable.”
* An AI tool was used to add an extra layer to the editing process for this story. You can read the original story in the Mirror by clicking here.
