Paul Mullin's Legacy at Wrexham

We’ve got Mullin, Super Paul Mullin… A chant that may no longer be based in fact, following today’s confirmation that Wrexham had parted ways with the striker whose scoring exploits played a pivotal role in the club’s rapid rise. An agreement has been reached to pay up the final year of his contract, meaning he will become a free agent.

After 110 goals in 172 appearances to go with three consecutive promotions, Mullin’s hero status is assured at The Racecourse Ground, meaning the terrace ditty in his honour seems certain to live on. As it should. He remains the undoubted poster boy for Wrexham’s revival during the Hollywood era.

He has not played for the club since February 2025 but fans’ affection for him remains strong. Mullin was once dubbed by co-owner Rob Mac as “the most famous footballer in the United States after Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo”, and even if that is no longer the case after this summer’s World Cup in the U.S., Canada and Mexico, Mullin was key to the revival of not just a football club but also a town.

Key Moments in Mullin's Career

It was his dramatic late double in stoppage time that fired Wrexham to Wembley for the only time under Mac and Ryan Reynolds. It was Mullin’s 38 league goals that fired Wrexham back into the English Football League in 2023, a campaign that also saw Mullin presented with the FA Cup Golden Boot award at the final after scoring eight goals. It was his devastating burst of nine goals in seven games during the run-in that fired Wrexham to promotion from League Two.

Picking a favourite among all his goals isn’t easy, even for the Liverpudlian. He tends to veer between the outrageous lob from outside the penalty area against Stockport County to break the deadlock in the 2022 FA Trophy semi-final and the curled effort that put Wrexham in front a year or so later on the night promotion back to the EFL was clinched with victory over Boreham Wood. Mullin being Mullin, he added a second goal for good measure on both occasions.

Off the Pitch

Goals were his business, so much so that he never quite got over being denied a hat-trick at Aldershot Town in February 2023, when his backheel was credited to home defender Corey Jordan as an own goal.

For the next 18 months or so, any interviewer who brought up his record of 38 goals in that promotion season or his six hat-tricks in Wrexham colours would be quickly cut off and told both figures were out by one. It wasn’t just his scoring deeds that made Mullin such a popular figure. There was also the Welcome to Wrexham documentary and its peek behind the curtain into the players’ home lives. In Mullin’s case, this included the striker opening up on his young son Albi being diagnosed with autism. The unconditional love between father and son struck a chord with the show’s global audience, who also saw Mullin forming a bond with a dedicated teenage fan who has the condition.

Viewers learned the meaning behind his goal celebration — creating the letter ‘A’ with his fingers as both a salute to Albi and to raise awareness of autism — that continues to stare down on Wrexham’s Yorke Street, courtesy of a mural painted on the side of the Fat Boar pub. Mullin’s outlook on life also chimed with a sizeable number in Wrexham’s fanbase, never more so than when he posted an image of his new boots on Instagram with the message, “F*** the Tories” printed on the side. Wrexham moved quickly to ensure the boots never made an appearance on the pitch but the fans lapped it up, even singing the derogatory phrase about the Conservative Party back to him several months later in McDonald’s as the promotion party after beating Boreham Wood stretched long into the night.

Joining Wrexham

It shouldn’t be forgotten just what a gamble Mullin took by joining Wrexham. He had just finished the 2020-21 campaign as League Two’s top scorer with 32 goals for Cambridge United. He was so popular that a stand at the Abbey Stadium had been temporarily named in his honour. As a free agent, he had options, with Championship duo Birmingham City and Preston North End showing early interest and Wayne Rooney inviting him to train at Derby County. Wigan Athletic, Blackburn Rovers, Charlton Athletic and Gillingham were all keen.

In comparison, fifth-tier Wrexham must have seemed like small beer, even allowing for the takeover by Reynolds and Mac just a few months earlier. Mullin, however, plumped for north Wales and a chance to be closer to his family on Merseyside. An inspired decision, as it turned out, with Wrexham proving to be every bit as good for Mullin as Mullin was for Wrexham. Along with the on-field achievements, there was a well-received autobiography to go with a huge public profile, which was boosted even further by a cameo role in the Deadpool & Wolverine film starring Reynolds and Hugh Jackman.

Challenges and Comebacks

Not everything was plain sailing, mind. Mullin had a barren run during Wrexham’s first campaign back in the EFL that left some wondering if his powers had waned following a sickening collision in a pre-season match against Manchester United that had left the striker with a punctured lung and four broken ribs. His belief, however, never wavered throughout those eight appearances without a goal. This steadfast faith was repaid via the stirring end to the campaign that brought not only promotion to the third tier but also his third consecutive club player of the year award.

Those 14 goals in the final 13 games raised hopes that more of the same lay ahead in League One. However, after undergoing back surgery in the summer of 2024, Mullin never hit the heights. There were brief glimpses, such as the stunning volley against Blackpool on Boxing Day that rightly won the club’s award for goal of the season. But, just three goals from nine starts and another 17 appearances from the bench led to manager Phil Parkinson looking elsewhere for Wrexham’s firepower. In came Sam Smith and Jay Rodriguez just before the end of the January window, and the pair ultimately led Wrexham to promotion in a rejigged 3-5-1-1 formation that reduced Mullin and strike partner Ollie Palmer to watching on from the stands.

Last season was spent out on loan with, first, Wigan Athletic and then Bradford City. The club statement confirming his departure represents a low-key end to what had been a spectacularly mutually beneficial partnership. When the full story of Wrexham under their Hollywood owners is written, the Liverpudlian’s name will be front and centre for the pivotal role he played in getting things going. Super Paul Mullin, indeed.