WALES legends Mickey Thomas and Malcolm Allen are spearheading a campaign to secure the funding necessary to bring international football to North Wales.
The main aim of the campaign is to secure funding which will allow the development of a 5,500 seater stand at the KOP End at the Racecourse Ground, which in turn is hoped will bring international football back to North Wales.
The campaign is urging supporters of Welsh Sport the length and breadth of Wales to sign an online Register of Support at https://www.change.org/StadiumNorth.
The register will be presented to UK Government decision makers before a funding decision is made in the Summer of 2022.
READ MORE: Calls for UK Government to 'step up' and deliver on Racecourse Ground funding
Wrexham County Borough Council (WCBC) will make the bid for funding called “The Wrexham Gateway” which includes funding for a 5,500 stand, improved media, broadcast and floodlight facilities, a 400 space multi-storey car park and ground works for convention centre and hotel.
The bid includes a mixture of public and private funding to achieve the ambition.
On leading the campaign, Mickey Thomas said: “The funding is vital if North Wales is to realise its ambition of having facilities capable of hosting international sport.
READ MORE: Everyone is working to optimise chances of Kop redevelopment, claims MP
"Currently there are no facilities in the North of Wales that are capable of hosting international sport (football and rugby) and therefore by default all sport must be played in an area South of the M4 in Wales.
“This lack of facilities means that a majority of young people and families across North Wales are excluded from these events due to the cost and difficulty of getting to Cardiff on a match day and that cannot be right.”
Malcolm Allen added: “Everyone knows that there can be long term health benefits of inspiring young people to take part in sport and access to internationals can play an important role in attracting participation.
READ MORE: Redeveloping the Kop is top of the list for Wrexham AFC advisor Shaun Harvey
"I urge everyone to take the couple of minutes it will take and sign your support for the funding bid.
"We need to show the decision makers how important this is to the people of Wales and bring back international football to its place of birth in Wrexham.”
The campaign will run until mid June and will provide information and communication that raises awareness of the “Wrexham Gateway” funding application.
The information surrounding the bid will be made easy to share and easy to follow to allow more people to be able to back the campaign.
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