‘Incredibly talented’ Louis Rees-Zammit putting World Rugby in ‘biggest shop window’ as CEO opens up on USA plans
Ex-Wales star Louis Rees-Zammit alongside World Rugby CEO Alan Gilpin.
World Rugby believe that they can benefit from Louis Rees-Zammit’s NFL move as they seek to make inroads into the North American market.
The Welshman switched to American Football in January and has since signed a deal with the defending Super Bowl champions, the Kansas City Chiefs.
Rees-Zammit is currently training with some of the stars of the sport, such as Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce, as he seeks to make the final 53-man roster.
Some see his defection to the NFL as a concern for rugby but Alan Gilpin, World Rugby’s CEO, disagrees and insists that it is an opportunity for the game to develop.
‘Important part of that story’
“I think it’s fantastic to see someone like Louis Rees-Zammit not only bringing his athletic talent to a new sport but into the biggest shop window you can have as an athlete,” he told the U.S. Sun.
“This [brings] conversations about rugby in markets like this which is important. Rees-Zammit is an important part of that story, he’s an incredibly talented athlete.
“His success here will be a good story for rugby.”
The governing body have tried and so far failed to promote the game effectively in the US.
There have been small steps forward, such as the introduction of Major League Rugby, but the sport has yet to truly take off.
It is not helped by the struggles of the national team, who are currently 19th in the world rankings, but they hope that having the Rugby World Cup in the US can provide a significant springboard for rugby.
World Cup and Olympics
In May 2022, it was announced that the US had won the bid to host the men’s and women’s World Cups in 2031 and 2033 respectively, while the Olympics, which includes rugby sevens, is being held in Los Angeles in 2028.
As a result, World Rugby feel that there is a significant opening for the sport to grow.
“It’s massive for rugby. In all the work we’ve done over the past two or three years on a strategic plan to grow the game of rugby globally… there is no doubt that the two biggest addressable opportunities for growth are the US and the women’s game,” Gilpin added.
“And that is fascinating when we are seeing the trajectory of women’s sport in the US.
“Those two growth opportunities are coming together and that is why we’ve given ourselves these runways to pinnacle events and use the moments of World Cups to drive interest but actually it’s about everything that sits around it.
“If we can make rugby a more mainstream sport in the US from a participation perspective, for audiences, for commercial rights that will have a massive impact on the game globally.”