Paul Mullin isn't just a star on the pitch for Wrexham, he's a TV star, too, thanks to the docuseries, "Welcome to Wrexham" ... which the footballer says he didn't know about until the moment he was literally signing his contract to join the club.
29-year-old Mullin was the first guest on the new Men In Blazers show, "This Week In Wrexham" ... where the star soccer player talked about his decision to sign with the then-fledgling team, and his decision to appear on the hit show.
"People think that the documentary might be a selling point, but I can tell you now that I didn't know about the documentary until I was signing the contract, sat at the table, and there were cameras in the room. And I was like, 'Who's this?' And they told me then, 'We're filming a documentary,'" the former Cambridge United star explained.
"It had nothing to do with my decision whatsoever. I didn't even know it was happening. I just signed the form as I was signing my contract to give them obviously the opportunity to record me. At that time obviously, you don't know how big it's gonna be. It's just something we've gotten used to. There are cameras everywhere, but you don't notice them because they're blending in, but also 'cause we're used to them, too."
Of course, "Welcome to Wrexham" premiered last summer on FX ... after Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney bought the Welsh team. The show has been a smash hit ... and was recently renewed for a third season, set to air in 2024.
If not for the docuseries, why did Mullin sign with Wrexham when other higher-profile clubs were available?
Paul explained his decision.
"It wasn't even [soccer] to begin with, it was my son. Obviously, it's well documented now but he's autistic, and I've been away in Cambridge for the majority of the season, obviously coming home whenever I could, and I just wanted to be at home with him every night, and Wrexham was the perfect opportunity to do that, and ultimately, it was perfect for me, as well in the [soccer] sense because it was a club with real ambition, a club going somewhere," Paul told Roger Bennett.
Wrexham has done incredibly well since Reynolds and Mullin's arrival ... they not only won the National League championship with a 3-1 win over Boreham Wood in April, but they were also elevated to League 2.
Wrexham is currently 4th out of 24 clubs ... with 9 wins, 6 draws, and 3 losses in 18 games this season.