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Wrexham AFC have appointed former Leeds United chief executive, Shaun Harvey as a director at the club following the team’s recent successes. The appointment would have broken EFL rules, but a clever loophole has allowed the move to be confirmed.
Harvey has played a prominent role for Wrexham since the arrival of Hollywood co-owners Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney. He is shown regularly as their right-hand man in the ‘Welcome to Wrexham’ documentary series, acting as an advisor to the pair.
He has now been formally appointed as a director and joins the pair on the board. Executive Director Humphrey Ker said: “Shaun has been at the heart of everything the Club has achieved since the takeover, and his elevation to the Board is both a recognition of his contributions and a formalisation of the role he has fulfilled for the last few years. I am delighted to welcome him to the Board of Wrexham AFC.”
Harvey’s appointment at Wrexham comes following spells at both Brentford and Leeds. The 53-year-old has great experience in the game, having started his career in the early 1990s at non-league side Farsley Celtic in West Yorkshire before a move to Scarborough.
His longest stint came when he then followed chairman Geoffrey Richmond to Bradford, spending 10 years at the club as a chief executive. During this time the club enjoyed a successful promotion to the Premier League in 1999, but sadly fell into administration in 2002 after suffering relegation.
After selling numerous assets, including players and the stadium, the club was able to avoid liquidation. However, this wasn’t his only involvement in a club that fell into administration.
Harvey’s next role saw him join Leeds where he would spend the next nine years of his career working under chairman Ken Bates. But when the club dropped into League One in 2007 following a 10-point penalty for owing £35m, including £7m unpaid taxes, Leeds saw a period of administration.
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Harvey would be forced to seek another job role when he became chief executive of the Football League in 2011. After eight years he would start a consultancy business, leading him to join Wrexham in 2020.
In a unique twist, Harvey would be banned from taking over a position as a director at Wrexham with EFL rules stating that a director can’t take up the same role at another club if they have suffered two insolvencies at other clubs. Thankfully for Wrexham that doesn’t apply in this case.
As Harvey’s time at Bradford City during their administration came before the ruling’s cut-off point, his role is able to stand at the club.
The EFL website states that any new member joining the board of directors won’t be permitted if “they have been a director of a football club which has suffered two insolvency events past June 2004 or separate football clubs which have each suffered an insolvency event past June 2004.”
Harvey’s new role at Wrexham, amid his popularity from the “Welcome to Wrexham” docuseries, comes amid an exciting time for the club. The Red Dragons currently sit third in League Two following last season’s promotion with a league record of 111 points.
The club is enjoying their time back in League Two after a 15 year absence. Wrexham has 11 wins, seven defeats and three draws so far which has taken them to third in the table and level on points with Barrow – and only six points behind league leaders Stockport.
Wrexham will be hoping to climb further up the table when they face Newport County next on Saturday, December 23 at the Racecourse Ground.
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