Can Wrexham get promoted? Promotion updates, key dates and latest results

Wrexham are one of the most exciting clubs outside the Premier League as the League One side has plenty of ambition to surge up the English football pyramid.

Hollywood stars Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney became the owners of the club back in February 2021, and the club have been on the ascendancy ever since.

The 2022/23 season saw them win the National League to finally escape the division, 15 years after slipping out of the Football League.

Last term, Wrexham made it back-to-back promotions as they finished second in League Two to secure their place in the third tier of the pyramid for the first time since 2004/05.

The onus is now on them to achieve promotion to the second tier – though this is unlikely to be the final aim, especially with the money that Reynolds and McElhenney have injected into the club.

With just a few months left of the campaign, Wrexham will need to be at their very best to secure either a first or second-place finish, thus making the move into the Championship.

Birmingham City and Wycombe Wanderers are the only two teams ahead of them at the time of writing. Will promotion be achieved this year, or will they require a year in League One? Here we analyse the latest results and fixtures along with delving into whether they can achieve promotion this season.

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How League One works

There are 24 clubs in League One, with all teams playing each other twice for a total of 46 league matches across the campaign.

This is the same number of games as in League Two and the Championship, should they get that far – but there are some notable differences between the bottom two divisions of the EFL.

In League One, there are only two automatic promotion spots, compared to the three on offer in the division below.

Teams who finish between 3rd and 6th will qualify for the play-offs. There are also four relegation spots compared to two in League Two.

Last season, sixth-placed Barnsley earned 76 points to qualify for the play-offs, while Portsmouth and Derby County – who were promoted automatically to the Championship – both accrued over 90 points during the 2023/24 season.

At the other end of the table, Burton Albion survived with 46 points, just two more than relegated Cheltenham Town.

Wrexham will be making history if they secure promotion to the Championship, as three successive promotions has never happened at this level of English football.

Due to their financial backing, Wrexham were tipped as one of the favourites to secure a third promotion in a row before the season started.

The club started rather well in the third tier, taking 10 points from their first four matches, which included a win over promotion rivals Wycombe.

Their form has largely been good, losing only six times across 29 matches in League One, conceding 25 goals, the joint-second-best defensive record.

Meanwhile, Wrexham’s recent victory over Bolton in the EFL Trophy quarter-finals means they will face Peterborough United on 26th February for a place in the final, which will be held at Wembley Stadium in April.

Another crucial match comes in March, as they face an away tie against Wycombe. Given the two clubs are separated by just four points, a win for Wrexham could allow them to surge into the promotion spots.

There is no doubt that they have acquitted themselves well in the third tier. The question now is whether they can make one more step on their journey to the Premier League.

Wrexham fixtures, results and standings

As it stands, the table suggests the fight for promotion could go down to the wire. Birmingham are in a very strong position to claim top spot, but Wrexham and fellow promoted side Stockport County are leading the chasing pack as they hunt down Wycombe’s four-point lead in second.

Wrexham have won all three of their matches so far in February. They defeated Port Vale 4-1 in the EFL Trophy group stage to progress to the last eight, where they beat Bolton 1-0 at the Racecourse Ground.

The Red Dragons have won their only League One match in February so far, securing a vital three points in a 2-1 away win over Crawley Town.

Wrexham scored after just two minutes courtesy of Matty James, and it looked like this was going to be the only goal of the match.

Crawley equalised in the final moments as it looked like the away side had dropped points in their promotion charge only for Elliot Lee to pop up with a header in the 95th minute to secure maximum points.

Next up is a trip to Northampton Town, with their EFL Trophy semi-final date with Peterborough just a fortnight away. Two fellow promotion hopefuls then follow in Bolton and Huddersfield.

The run-in will test the players, playing a total of 17 league games and another two cup games (if they manage to reach the final of the EFL Trophy). Squad rotation will be key over the next couple of weeks.

Form has been mixed over the previous five games, dropping points in all but one league match. They still have a chance of securing a finish in the top two, but Wrexham will have to win the majority of their remaining league games for that to happen.

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