Melbourne Storm superstar Ryan Papenhuyzen has held a high-level meeting with the bosses of breakaway rugby competition Rugby360 about the possibility of defecting in 2027.
With competition organisers in Australia for the British and Irish Lions tour as they continue their push to launch in 2026, the Storm No.1 has captured the attention of recruiters looking to add some rugby league talent to their list of players.
R360 officials were in Melbourne over the weekend for the second Test between the Wallabies and Lions and met with Papenhuyzen on Sunday, raising fears of a raid on the NRL’s best talent.
Papenhuyzen, who played schoolboys rugby for Oakhill College, is contracted to the Storm until the end of the 2026 season.
Sources with knowledge of the situation talking on the condition of anonymity told this masthead Papenhuyzen is giving strong consideration to switching codes at the conclusion of his Storm deal.
Papenhuyzen’s agent, Clinton Schifcofske, declined to comment.
Ryan Papenhuyzen is considering defecting from the sport.Credit: Wolter Peeters
While Papenhuyzen hasn’t signed as yet, the deal is expected to be worth in excess of $1.5 million a season. For context, Kalyn Ponga is the highest-paid player in the NRL on $1.4 million a year.
It comes after this masthead revealed earlier this month that Warriors outside back Roger Tuivasa-Sheck is on the verge of agreeing to a deal with R360 worth close to $1.1 million a year from 2027.
The 32-year-old, who is on around $550,000 at the Warriors next year, still has one more year to run on his current deal but is poised to double his salary in the twilight of his career if the new competition gets off the ground.
“Roger comes off his current NRL contract in 2026, and as part of that planning, I threw this in front of him and asked if he had any interest in this option,” Tuivasa-Sheck’s agent Bruce Sharrock said of the R360 offer.
Roger Tuivasa-Sheck could be leaving rugby league again.Credit: Getty
“He said, ‘Why wouldn’t I?’ I’ve always encouraged all my players to look at all options, and that’s where we are at right now.”
The competition needs to hit three major triggers to secure private equity funding before it can become a reality.
The first is to have the franchises purchased and legally drafted. The second requires the confirmation of a broadcast partner, while the third element of the deal requires organisers to secure 200 players. All three targets must be reached by the end of September.
Danny Townsend – the CEO of SURJ Sports Investment, the sports arm of Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, – says the concept isn’t being backed by them despite reports suggesting they were looking to join forces with competition organisers.
Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii of the Wallabies is tackled during the Lions match over the weekend.Credit: Getty Images
“We’ve not had any conversations with R360 and at this stage are not looking at any rugby investment,” he said.
ARL Commission chairman Peter V’landys recently warned players of the risk of signing with R360.
“Whoever goes with them, if they are going to go with them, they are taking an almighty risk because no one has seen a business model, no one has seen how they are going to generate revenue,” V’landys recently told News Corp.
“It’s like anything – if it seems to be too good to be true, it just might be. It’s like when you make an investment. You might get a greater return, but you’re also taking a bigger risk. The first thing I would ask myself is how are they going to pay for this. I would want to understand how they are going to fund it.
“I would caution players to do a risk analysis. We’re keeping an eye on it but everything so far, you can’t substantiate how it will happen.”
In Sydney for an announcement for 2027 Rugby World Cup tickets, World Rugby boss Alan Gilpin addressed the R360 concept, which would require World Rugby sign-off to get up and running.
Gilpin said the competition would need to observe the existing “Regulation 9” release windows for players to be able to play Test rugby for their countries through the year.
Theoretically, it could open the door for Papenhuyzen, and other NRL recruits, to be called up by the Wallabies.
Rugby Australia’s current policy is that players must compete in Super Rugby to be eligible for Test selection, but the Wallabies coach can pick three offshore-based players per series under the “Giteau Law”.
“We need to have a dialogue with those guys when they are ready to do that. Rugby needs investment. Rugby is, and Australia is, a great example, in a really competitive environment,” Gilpin said of R360.
“Around the world, every sport and beyond sport is competing in an ever more difficult attention economy. Investment into the game is great. As long as that investment is driving into the right areas and creating a more financially sustainable game for players, for the wider ecosystem, then we encourage it. We’ve got to understand what that means in the R360 case.
“The position is that whatever competitions arise, we know players want to play international rugby. In our sport, the international game is the pinnacle of the game. Players want to play in World Cups, they want to play in the Olympic Games ... Whatever new concepts, whether it is R360 or otherwise, which are being discussed with players, Regulation 9 and that whole concept of player release for defined international windows is key.”
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