Wrexham are among the clubs warned by the EFL over social media ‘banter’ after their posts poking fun at Southampton’s Spygate affair came under the spotlight.
EFL chief executive Trevor Birch wrote to club chairs and executives following a board meeting, asking them to stop using disputes, disciplinary cases and allegations of wrongdoing as material for their official accounts. According to the Daily Echo’s report on the letter, Birch is concerned that the pursuit of shares and replies is starting to come at the expense of clubs’ reputations.
“Repeated public exchanges can inflame relationships, undermine confidence in the fairness and professionalism of our competitions, and weaken the collective EFL brand,” Birch wrote.
He said there was room for humour and rivalry on club channels, but asked clubs to consider where a joke starts to target an individual or bring the integrity of the competition into question.
Wrexham provided one of the most high-profile examples in September, when co-chairmen Ryan Reynolds and Rob Mac appeared in a video promoting club sponsor Firefox. The pair emerged from behind a tree to talk about online privacy, a dig at Southampton ahead of a Championship game Wrexham went on to win 2-1. Saints had been thrown out of the previous season’s play-offs after admitting breaches of the rules on observing opponents’ training.
April 7 2026: Wrexham AFC 1-5 Southampton
May 7 2026: Southampton get caught spying on Middlesbrough
September 19 2026: Wrexham AFC 2-1 Southampton
Makes you think… 😉
🔴⚪️ #WxmAFC https://t.co/sRj8W5l0an
— Wrexham AFC (@Wrexham_AFC) September 19, 2026
The September video followed a similar joke on fixture release day in June, when Wrexham put a reminder to check their training ground for uninvited visitors on their calendar two days before the Southampton game. They tucked an image of a man behind a tree into the Saints badge. Birmingham City joined in with a graphic showing the two clubs’ badges cut into hedges and viewed through binoculars.
Blackburn Rovers made a lighter jibe after beating West Ham United 2-1 last weekend. After West Ham head coach Scott Parker said he hadn’t seen any Blackburn fans on the way to Ewood Park, Rovers posted footage of their supporters celebrating the goals, captioned “Found some for ya, Scott”.
Lincoln City’s approach
It’s the sort of thing Lincoln City have steered clear of on our official accounts. Most of us have had a laugh at another club’s expense, but it lands differently when it comes from an account that speaks for the Imps. If another club used one of our disciplinary cases to sell something for a sponsor, I doubt many of us would be applauding the marketing.
There’s plenty of material for the club’s accounts in an away end going up after a late winner or a player giving his teammates a bit of stick. A rival’s disciplinary case might get a post shared for an afternoon, but the club’s name is still on it once everyone else has moved on. We still have to deal with those clubs over things like away ticket allocations and fixture arrangements. Leaving those digs to the terraces and the group chats has served Lincoln’s media department well.
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