Update: Wrexham AFC's inclusion in FIFA 22 has been confirmed in a video featuring the club's A-list owners.
In a video shared on Twitter, Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney, who purchased the club last year, offered players a geography lesson. In the short clip, which you can watch below, the pair explained that while many people think Wrexham - which is in Wales - is part of England, it's actually in a different region, named Rest of World.
Today, “Rest of World”. Tomorrow… the world? @Wrexham_AFC @EASPORTSFIFA pic.twitter.com/4NTE2WHGeMSeptember 12, 2021
That's an allusion to the fact that while clubs from England and Wales' top four leagues can be found under the England menu, the league that Wrexham AFC competes in didn't make the cut. Unwilling to include a whole extra league, EA Sports placed the club in what Reynolds describes as "a random assortment of cultures, climates, and football clubs."
Original story: Wrexham AFC, the club sensationally brought by Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney, will reportedly be included in FIFA 22.
In a recent tweet, football commentator and Football Manager researcher Ollie Bayliss confirmed that the club, which competes in the fifth tier of English football, will feature in the game as the only playable non-league side. While other English and Welsh clubs are accessible via the appropriate Premier League, Championship, League One or League Two menus, Wrexham will be available via the 'Rest of World' category.
Wrexham bills itself as the third-oldest professional football club in the world, but that's unlikely to be the reason why the club has made it onto EA's radar. In February 2021, Deadpool actor Ryan Reynolds purchased the club alongside It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia's Rob McElhenney. The deal, which was overwhelmingly supported by fans, has raised the club's profile significantly, resulting in the production of a documentary entitled Welcome to Wrexham.
Earlier this summer, leaked code suggested Wrexham would be making it into the latest edition of EA's footballing practice. There's still no direct confirmation, but with Bayliss' comments corroborating those early reports, it's starting to look increasingly likely.
FIFA 22 is set to release on October 1, so we don't have long to wait to find out for sure whether Reynolds and McElhenney's club has made it into the game. One thing does seem pretty likely, however - the team's players might find it a little tricky to stand up to the game's other English and Welsh clubs, especially with Christiano Ronaldo back at Manchester United.
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