Rumours of a preseason friendly between Wrexham and Newcastle United have fallen through, amid the Magpies’ change of plans for a European tour this summer.
Recently, Wrexham fans took note of club icon Mickey Thomas’ frank assessment of their FA Cup tie against Chelsea. While Mickey’s position is unlikely to garner majority support, the sporting framework underpinning it is worthy of consideration.
Wrexham has a challenging Championship schedule after the Chelsea contest. Though the Reds wish to excel both in the league & advance in the Cup, they can’t risk a promotion at the expense of a Chelsea upset.
Mickey’s verdict on the FA Cup tie as a “distraction” is understandable given his connection to the club. A Premier League clash now may raise eyebrows, but a pre‑season friendly against one this summer? That’s an idea with no opposition.
Notably, Wrexham have been doing the behind-the-scenes work to arrange a Premier League friendly for quite some time. In this context, the Reds had been linked to a showdown against Newcastle United in the USA this summer.
However, this virtually uncontested plan has been put on hold as well. This comes after Newcastle have reportedly pulled back from the original plan of a preseason in the US and now looks forward to summer preparations in Europe instead.
An excerpt of the Daily Mail report stated: “There were talks at one stage for a glamour friendly in Florida against Wrexham, the high-flying Championship club owned by Hollywood actors Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney.
However, it is now likely that Howe and his players will stay closer to home, with options in Portugal, Austria and Germany under consideration.”
Wrexham Vs Newcastle friendly rumours are over
Wrexham’s sporting history against Newcastle is one to boast about. During their 10 meetings in the 1970s and 1980s era, the Reds held the upper hand over the Tyneside club, with 4 wins and 3 draws to show for it.
With the last clash between Wrexham and Newcastle dating back to 1982, fans would’ve welcomed the idea of a rematch now. But as the Daily Mail reports, any such plans have been put to bed at least for this summer.
This development comes as a snowball effect of the FIFA WC 2026 scheduled in the USA, Mexico and Canada. With the biggest International stars on extensive national duty this summer, the Preseason was touted to be a lacklustre one globally.
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A similar repercussion has seen Newcastle shift its preseason destination to Central Europe. With the summer-friendly commencing within weeks of the WC conclusion, the Magpies believe a preseason in the US will fail to generate hype and won’t be a successful tour commercially or financially.
As per Newcastle’s new plan, Eddie Howe’s side can tour Europe in their attempt to spread the club’s word all over the world. Instead of entering the near-saturated US market, the Magpies look forward to a preseason against the teams of Portugal, Austria, and Germany on European soil.
Wrexham can still play Premier League friendlies in 2026
Wrexham’s plan to lock horns with a Premier League opponent for the 2026 preseason tour isn’t new. Even before the new year began, the Reds had been in talks with Manchester United over a blockbuster friendly in Finland.
In the last weeks, Wrexham once again emerged as a possible opponent for Liverpool to arrange a friendly, following a near miss in 2024. And now comes the Newcastle Preseason rumours to complete a hat-trick of PL friendly possibilities.
As of now, only the Magpies have been ruled for a friendly fire against Wrexham. Manchester United and Liverpool are active in contention to hold a preseason clash against the up-and-coming Wrexham side.
Of the two opponents, a rematch of the 2023 friendly against the Red Devils holds a significant edge over the Liverpool contest.
With Wrexham’s confirmed friendly against Polish side Wisła Kraków, a clash with Manchester United in Finland would complete a memorable Scandinavian tour. Meanwhile, a trip to the US isn’t ruled out yet, where the Reds could also face Liverpool this summer.
While talks are heading in the right direction on these friendlies, Wrexham fans won’t be left disappointed even if both plans collapse. That’s because their FA Cup progress sees them facing at least one Big 6 club, Chelsea, in the near future.
All in all, Wrexham are in for an exciting summer that could see them face multiple Premier League clubs. The best‑case scenario, of course, would be winning promotion to the top flight, making such clashes a weekly occurrence next season.
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