Wrexham seals third straight promotion and will play in English soccer's second tier

WREXHAM, Wales (AP) — Wrexham fans ignored the warnings. They were always going to.

By the time the final whistle blew on Saturday to confirm promotion to English soccer's second tier, thousands were ready and waiting to storm the field in celebration.

Flares were lit, red smoke filled the air, Welsh flags were waved proudly and songs sung raucously.

Wrexham was one step from the Premier League and nothing was going to stop this party.

There were warnings of police action for pitch invaders before kickoff. And as a 3-0 win against Charlton reached its final moments, an announcement over the loudspeaker told fans the game could be stopped if they didn't move back behind barricades.

But everyone inside the club's historic Racecourse Ground knew what was coming, and within seconds of the whistle the field was a sea of red as Wrexham supporters celebrated wildly.

The Welsh soccer team's remarkable rise under Hollywood owners Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney hit a new high as it ensured it would go up as the third division runner-up behind champion Birmingham.

It means that from next season it will be playing one level below the Premier League, something that was unthinkable just four years ago when it was a struggling non-league team.

Reynolds and McElhenney were part of a full house of nearly 13,000 fans packed into the stadium to celebrate a third consecutive promotion.

Who knows what's next for a team that has defied the odds since the actors bought it for $2.5 million in 2021 and turned it into a household name around the world.

While celebrations greeted the final whistle, the party began much earlier after promotion rival Wycombe lost to Leyton Orient 1-0.

Wrexham just needed victory then to clinch the second promotion place in League One.

Reynolds posed for selfies with fans outside and served drinks behind the bar in a marquee set up outside the nearby Turf pub, which has earned world renown from the docuseries “Welcome to Wrexham.”

Fans erupted in cheers after the final whistle of Wycombe’s loss, which was shown on a big screen.

Wrexham just needed to finish the job off against fourth-placed Charlton and eased nerves with two goals in the space of three minutes in the first half. Oliver Rathbone’s long shot in the 15th minute was followed by Sam Smith’s volley.

When Smith headed in a third in the 81st the outcome was in no doubt and Wrexham's fans serenaded the players with chants of “We are going up.”

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James Robson is at https://twitter.com/jamesalanrobson

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AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer