Wrexham are now in full control of the Racecourse Ground, after completing the collapse of the stadium’s lease.A deal had been previously struck in 2022 for the club owned by Rob Mac and Ryan Reynolds to buy the freehold from Wrexham University.Crucially, however, the lease remained with the Wrexham Supporters Trust (WST), who had run the club for a decade before selling to the two actors in February, 2021.The lease held by WST Assets ran until 2115 with the Trust sub-leading it back to the club for 25 years from the date of the takeover.An agreement has now been struck that will see the Trust paid £187,000 — a sum that will be used to repay fans who donated money to keep Wrexham alive in 2011.A covenant is also in place as part of the deal, guaranteeing Wrexham remain at the stadium until 2115.A club spokesperson says: “All at Wrexham would like to thank the WST for their support, co-operation and efforts to complete the transactions. Discussions have been ongoing for some time, which was necessary to ensure these agreements were adapted as the stadium funding arrangements were finalised.“We look forward to seeing the Kop development continuing to grow on the fourth side of the Racecourse Ground, as we deliver an improved stadium for our players, staff and supporters in line with the commitment made by Rob & Ryan at the time of the takeover.”Club can now press on with redevelopment plansAs the steel framework and concrete steps of the new £69.1 million Kop stand being built at the town end of the Racecourse continue to edge higher up into the north Wales skyline, the collapse of the lease is the final piece of a jigsaw started in 2021 by the takeover.It’s also an important step forward for a club who had sold their home in 2011 to the neighbouring university amid an all-too-familiar financial crisis.Five years after that, the Trust assumed stadium operational responsibilities for a site that remained in university hands.Wrexham bought back the stadium in June, 2022, but it is only now that they have full control. The hold-up has been purely down to legal and logistical matters with the club covering all legal fees to ensure everything was watertight.To recap, Trust members voted overwhelmingly to surrender the lease to the club in December, 2023, in an agreement that guarantees Wrexham continue to play at the Racecourse until at least June 30, 2115.Issues that delayed matters included the club’s purchase of two pieces of land from Wrexham University and the Wales Government having to be completed in a certain order legally as part of the funding agreement that saw £18 million in grants set aside by the Wales government, via Wrexham borough council, for the Wrexham Gateway project that includes the new Kop stand.The lease then had to go before the Financial Conduct Authority before being signed by all parties in recent days.Now in full control, Wrexham can in time press ahead with a planned wider redevelopment of international football’s oldest stadium still in use.The 7,500 capacity Kop is due to be opened sometime in 2027, after which it is expected attention will turn to the other three stands. Two of those were built in the 1970s and are showing their age, while the most recent addition is the Mold Road Stand, opened in 1999.