Wrexham AFC and United Airlines fly home descendants of Welsh expats who left for Patagonia in 1865

Maximum Effort have proven to be adept documentary storytellers through their Emmy-winning FX show “Welcome to Wrexham,” which chronicles the efforts of the Welsh soccer team (after being bought by Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenny) and also richly explores many of the quirky characters in town. Now, in partnership with United Airlines (the club’s front-of-jersey sponsor since 2023), Max Effort traveled further afield to find another compelling Wrexham story. It concerns a small group of Wrexham AFC fans who live in the Patagonia region of Argentina. Their ancestors—153 of them—emigrated from Wales beginning in 1865 to the remote Patagonian province of Chubut. A small Welsh community survives in Chubut to this day, many of whom support Wrexham—a club that is quickly climbing the British soccer tables under Reynolds and McElhenny’s ownership. Also read: See Rob McElhenney baseball-ize a Wrexham soccer match A new 30-minute documentary, running online and directed by Jared Cook, shows Wrexham and United organizing a once-in-a-lifetime trip back to Wales for five Patagonian fans, who never thought they’d see a game in person. At the center of the doc is David Mardones, a superfan who hasn’t been able to make the trip before—despite an ultimately unsuccessful GoFundMe effort on his behalf. See the full doc below. “Welcome to Wrexham” has been an interesting case study in building a modern global sports brand largely through media, marketing and creativity. But “ReUnited” is a reminder, too, that so much of that approach is predicated on the rich narratives of the sports world, where identities tied to teams can thrive across centuries of history. Some footage from the doc—8-10 minutes in total—will be included in Thursday night’s new episode of “Welcome to Wrexham.” Popular Creativity stories from Ad Age: Sign up for our daily Creativity newsletter to see the best stories of the day.

Wrexham AFC and United Airlines fly home descendants of Welsh expats who left for Patagonia in 1865

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