Ikitau Rejects R360: Prioritizes 2027 World Cup with Wallabies

Wallabies center Len Ikitau has revealed that he would not join the rebel R360 competition if it meant being excluded from playing in the 2027 World Cup. The 27-year-old player admitted that R360 had contacted him to join the competition, which the organizers hope will begin next October, but he would be reluctant to participate since it could cost him a place on the team.

Being able to play in a Rugby World Cup, but in Australia, I don’t think the opportunity will come again.

Len Ikitau

Rugby Australia, along with the major rugby unions, including New Zealand, England, Ireland and France, announced that they would ban players from participating in international matches if they chose to join the breakaway league. The competition aims to have 12 franchises worldwide, with eight men’s and four women’s teams, and the matches would be played in a traveling format, similar to Formula 1, with plans to hold events in Miami, London, and Tokyo.

The organizers claim to have the signatures of up to 200 international players and have set their sights on many within Australia, including prominent rugby league stars such as Reece Walsh, Nathan Cleary, and Payne Haas.

It looks like it’s going to be an exciting competition.

Len Ikitau

Ikitau also commented on the options a player must weigh when considering joining the new competition.

If you play in that competition you can’t play in the World Cup, you’re weighing your options.

Len Ikitau

Ikitau has recently arrived in Exeter for his one-year contract after the Rugby Championship, where Australia finished third with two wins in six matches, despite a promising start with an initial victory over the Springboks in Johannesburg and an incredible after-the-buzzer win against the Pumas in Townsville. They are joined by English center Henry Slade and winger Immanuel Feyi-Waboso, as the team looks to recover from the penultimate position in the Premiership last season. Speaking on Stan Sport’s “Between Two Posts” podcast earlier this week, the center revealed that he would not be available for the first two Wallabies matches at the end of the year against Japan on October 25 (AEDT) and England on November 2 (AEDT), but that he hoped to be available for the clash against Italy on November 9 (AEDT). Ikitau explained that he had spoken with Joe Schmidt, trying to offer himself for the weekly training, but Schmidt told him to take the week off and prepare for the match against Italy. He concluded by expressing his disappointment with the last two Rugby Championship matches, but he was optimistic about the team’s direction.