There are many players who have converted from one football code to another or even changed from other sports at a professional or representational level.
In some countries, such as the United Kingdom or Australia where multiple codes are popular and the practice of switching codes is relatively common they are known simply as a code convert.[1] In Australia star code converts can have a substantial impact on the football codes. For instance, Dally Messenger's defection from rugby union to rugby league was considered a pivotal moment in the establishment of the latter code over other codes in Australia.[2][3]
Globalisation is increasing the opportunities for players to transfer to different countries and to different professional sports, including the codes of football.
Contents |
Because American and Canadian football are both gridiron codes, they are very similar, and most players can easily change back and forth between the two codes without much difficulty. Below is only a partial list of players who have made the transition from the NFL to the CFL.
| Name | Country | Top American football level | Top Canadian football level | American Football debut | Canadian football debut |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Robert Edwards | USA | NFL | CFL | ||
| Mervyn Fernandez | USA | NFL | CFL | ||
| Doug Flutie | USA | NFL | CFL | ||
| Mark Gastineau | USA | NFL | CFL | ||
| Shaun King | USA | NFL | CFL | ||
| Lawrence Phillips | USA | NFL | CFL | ||
| Casey Printers | USA | NFL | CFL | ||
| Andre Rison | USA | NFL | CFL | ||
| Ricky Williams | USA | NFL | CFL | ||
| Cleo Lemon | USA | NFL | CFL |
| Name | Country | Top American Football Level | Top Rugby League Level | Top representation level |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Manfred Moore | USA | NFL | New South Wales Rugby Football League | - |
| Philippe Gardent | France | NFL Europe | National League One | - |
| Name | Country | Top American football level | Top rugby union level | Top representation level |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bennie Brazell | USA | NFL (injured reserve) | USA sevens | |
| Dave Hodges | USA | NCAA Division III | Celtic League | USA (15s) |
| Dan Lyle | USA | NCAA Division I FCS | English Premiership | USA (15s) |
| Leonard Peters | USA | NFL (practice squad) | USA Rugby Men's Club Division I | USA (7s and 15s) |
| Richard Tardits | France, later USA | NFL | Top 14 | USA (15s) |
NB: Tardits switched codes twice: to American football as a young adult, and back to rugby union after a brief NFL career. He played for Biarritz Olympique and the France under-21 national team before switching to American football, and played for the USA national team after returning to his original code.
| Name | Country | Top American Football Level | Top Australian rules football Level | Top representation level |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dwayne Armstrong | USA | NCAA Division I FBS | Australian Football League (reserves) | - |
Numerous American football placekickers grew up playing football (soccer); however, very few have competed at a very high level in their original code. A large number of the first "soccer-style" placekickers of the 1960s and early 1970s were Europeans and Latin Americans who changed codes in adulthood. Eventually, kickers who changed codes in adulthood were largely, though not completely, displaced by players who were either born and raised in the U.S. or immigrated to the U.S. at a relatively early age, thus receiving more exposure to American football than most of the first soccer-style placekickers.
| Name | Country | Top Football (Soccer) Level | Top American football Level | Top representation level |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Phil Alexander | England | Norwich City F.C. | London Monarchs | N/A |
| Clive Allen | England | Tottenham Hotspur F.C. | London Monarchs | England national football team |
| Jesús Angoy | Spain | FC Barcelona | Barcelona Dragons | N/A |
| Manfred Burgsmüller | Germany | Werder Bremen | Rhein Fire | Germany national football team |
| Toni Fritsch | Austria | Rapid Vienna | Dallas Cowboys, San Diego Chargers, Houston Oilers, New Orleans Saints |
Austria national football team (soccer) Pro Bowl (American football) |
| Tony Meola | USA | Red Bull New York, Fort Lauderdale Strikers, Buffalo Blizzard | New York Giants (didn't pass tryouts) | US National Team (soccer) |
| Liz Heaston | USA | Willamette Bearcats | Willamette Bearcats | First female to play college football |
| Ashley Martin | USA | Jacksonville State Gamecocks | Jacksonville State Gamecocks | First female to play NCAA football |
| Name | Country | Top soccer Level | Top Gaelic football Level | Top representation level | Playing Era |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ciarán Lyng | Ireland | Preston North End F.C., Shrewsbury Town F.C., Ireland underage teams | Wexford senior football team | 2000s | |
| Shane Supple | Ireland | Ipswich Town F.C., Falkirk F.C. | Dublin senior football team | 2000s | |
| Anthony Tohill | Ireland | Derry City F.C., Manchester United F.C. Reserves | Derry senior football team | 1990s, 2000s |
Frank Hadden, Scottish rugby player and coach, had trials with both Queens Park Rangers and Forfar Athletic, as well as being offered a contract by Raith Rovers.[5]
| Name | Country | Top Aussie rules level | Top American football level | Top representation level | Playing Era |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pat O'Dea | Australia | VFA | College football | N/A | 1890s |
| Colin Ridgeway | Australia | VFL (reserves) | NFL | N/A | 1960s |
| Darren Bennett | Australia | AFL | NFL | N/A | 1987–2005 |
| Ben Graham | Australia | AFL | NFL | Australia (Inter-rules) | 1993 - |
| Nathan Chapman | Australia | AFL | NFL (rookie) | N/A | 2004 - |
| Saverio Rocca | Australia | AFL | NFL | N/A | 1992 - |
| Chris Bryan | Australia | AFL | NFL | N/A | 2005 - |
The technique of kicking grubber goals and scissor kicking in Aussie Rules is similar to goal striking in soccer, and International Rules participation provides experience with the round ball and even goal keeping.
As well as the players below, some player have been known to have played amateur level soccer after retiring from the AFL include Gary Ablett, James Hird and Gavin Wanganeen.[6]
| Name | Country | Top Aussie rules level | Top Soccer level | Top representation level | Playing Era |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Peter Bevilaqua | Australia | VFL | Victorian Premier League | N/A | 1950s |
| Angelo Lekkas | Australia | AFL with Hawthorn | Victorian Premier League with South Melbourne | Australia (Inter-rules) | 1993 - |
| Fred Agius | Australia | SANFL with Central Districts | A-League with North Queensland Fury | Olyroos | 2000s - |
| Name | Country | Top Australian Rules Level | Top Gaelic football Level | Top representation level | Playing Era |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Paul Earley | Ireland | AFL | All-Ireland Senior Football Championship | NA | 1980s |
| Dermot McNicholl | Ireland | AFL | Derry All-Ireland winner 1993 | NA | 1980s, 1990s |
| Anthony Tohill | Ireland | Melbourne Demons | Derry senior football team | NA | 1990s, 2000s |
| Tadhg Kennelly | Ireland | AFL premiership 2005 | Kerry All-Ireland winner 2009 | Ireland (Inter-rules) | 2000s |
As in rugby league and Australian rules, early in the history of the two codes in Australia the two codes were interchangeable . There is a much greater divide today. Jason Akermanis was the first professional Australian football player to suggest a switch to rugby union.[7] Nevertheless, there are still some positions and roles that have commonalities.[8] Also at amateur level, conversion is quite common, as in the case of many start-up Australian Rules clubs in countries such as France[9] and developing Aussie Rules countries such as New Zealand and Samoa where there are dual-internationals at junior level.
| Name | Country | Top Aussie rules Level | Top rugby union Level | Top representation level |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nick Evans | New Zealand | Falcons Under 21 | All Blacks | New Zealand U21 (AR), New Zealand (RU) |
| Rambo Tavana | Samoa | Samoa | Manu Samoa | Samoa (AR), Samoa (RU) |
| Mikaele Pesamino | Samoa | Samoa | Manu Samoa and Manu Sevens | Samoa (AR), Samoa (RU) |
| Alec Boswell Timms | Australia/Scotland | Geelong | Scotland/British Isles | Scotland/British Isles (RU) |
Early in the history of the two codes in Australia, players would interchange the codes and even had discussions of merging them into a single game.[10] Rugby league has since evolved to specialise in physicality and body type making it more difficult for successful conversion between the two, although it does sometimes happen at junior level and in areas where both codes are played. League great Darren Lockyer played Aussie Rules at a junior level in Queensland,[11] as did Marcus Bai in Papua New Guinea. Players of both codes at Junior levels have included Peter Sterling (League) and Paul Kelly (AFL). Greg Brentnall played Australian Football in Riverina in the 1960s before turning down an offer to play in the VFL/AFL and switching to rugby league taking up a contract with the Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs in 1972.
| Name | Country | Top Aussie rules Level | Top rugby league Level | Top representation level |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Barry Spring | Australia | QAFL (Mayne) | QRL (Norths) | QRL First Grade premiership |
| Adrian Barich | Australia | AFL | ARL reserve grade | NSW, WA (AR) |
| Matt Duffie | New Zealand | New Zealand Falcons | NRL | New Zealand (RL), New Zealand (AR)[12] |
| Shaun Johnson | New Zealand | New Zealand Falcons | NRL | New Zealand (AR)[13] |
Because American and Canadian football are both gridiron codes, they are very similar, and most players can easily change back and forth between the two codes without much difficulty. Below is only a partial list of players who have made the transition from the CFL to the NFL.
| Name | Country | Top Canadian football level | Top American football level |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mervyn Fernandez | USA | CFL | NFL |
| Doug Flutie | USA | CFL | NFL |
| Jeff Garcia | USA | CFL | NFL |
| Harald Hasselbach | Netherlands | CFL | NFL |
| Raghib Ismail | USA | CFL | NFL |
| Warren Moon | USA | CFL | NFL |
| Casey Printers | USA | CFL | NFL |
| Mike Sellers | USA | CFL | NFL |
| Joe Theismann | USA | CFL | NFL |
| Cameron Wake | USA | CFL | NFL |
| Ricky Williams | USA | CFL | NFL |
Gaelic football is especially vulnerable to code-switching, for reasons outlined by rugby union journalist Hugh Farrelly in 2009:
| “ | The parochialism that is the GAA's greatest strength (every village in Ireland has a local team) is also its Achilles heel for, with no viable international outlet, the Association is vulnerable to other sports. Furthermore, a strict adherence to its amateur code means talented youngsters can be lured away from the game they grew up with... by the prospect of pay for play....[14] | ” |
Like rugby union and league, the two codes share similarities, making switching between them a possibility. International Rules representation for players of both codes is common. The Gaelic Athletic Association prohibits professionalism, meaning that there is a financial lure for players to compete in the professional elite Aussie Rules competitions in Australia.[15]
| Name | Country | Top Gaelic level | Top Aussie rules level | Top representation level | Playing Era |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sean Wight | Scotland | Gaelic Athletic Association | AFL | NA | 1985-95 |
| Paul Earley | Ireland | Gaelic Athletic Association | VFL | NA | 1985-87 |
| Dermot McNicholl | Ireland | Derry All-Ireland winner 1993 | AFL | NA | 1985-97 |
| Brian Stynes | Ireland | Dublin All-Ireland winner 1995 | AFL | Ireland (Inter-rules), Ireland (AR) | 1985-95 |
| Jim Stynes | Ireland | Dublin All-Ireland (Minor) winner 1994 | AFL (Brownlow Medallist) | Ireland (Inter-rules) | 1987-98 |
| Tadhg Kennelly | Ireland | Kerry All-Ireland winner 2009 | AFL premiership 2005 | Ireland (Inter-rules) | 2001- |
| Colm Begley | Ireland | Gaelic Athletic Association | AFL | Ireland (Inter-rules) | 2006- |
| Martin Clarke | Ireland | Down All-Ireland (Minor) winner 2005 | AFL | N/A | 2005- |
| Pierce Hanley | Ireland | Gaelic Athletic Association | AFL | N/A | 2008- |
| Michael Quinn | Ireland | Gaelic Athletic Association | AFL | N/A | 2009- |
| Kevin Dyas | Ireland | Gaelic Athletic Association | AFL | N/A | 2009- |
NB: Byrne changed codes twice. He first switched to rugby union as a teenager, then returned to Gaelic football after a long professional rugby career. This entry discusses his Gaelic football career before his first code switch.
| Name | Country | Top Gaelic football level | Top rugby league Level | Top representation level |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brian Carney | Ireland | Local football team | Super League / NRL | Great Britain (RL) |
see also
| Name | Country | Top rugby union Level | Top association football Level | Top representation level | Playing Era |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| J.W. Sutcliffe | England | Bradford P.A./Heckmondwike | Bolton Wanderers/Manchester United | England (both) | 1880s/1910s |
| Adam Holloway | England | Henley Hawks/ Crusaders |
Strathcona Terriers FC | England/New Zealand/Canada | 2000s |
| Tony Ward | Ireland | Munster/Ireland/British and Irish Lions | Shamrock Rovers/Limerick United | British and Irish Lions | 1970s and 1980s |
| Tommy Moroney | Ireland | Munster | West Ham United | Republic of Ireland | 1940s |
| Aaron Ramsey | Wales | Caerphilly RFC (youth team) | Cardiff City/Arsenal | Wales | 2000s |
| Henry Renny-Tailyour | Scotland | Scotland | Royal Engineers A.F.C. | Scotland | 1870s, 1880s |
| Name | Country | Top rugby union Level | Top Gaelic football Level | Top representation level | Playing Era |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Shane Byrne | Ireland | Leinster Rugby, Ireland, British and Irish Lions | Aughrim GAA | 1990s, 2000s | |
| Eric Miller | Ireland | Old Wesley, Leicester Tigers, Leinster, the Barbarians, Ireland, British and Irish Lions | Dublin senior football team | Dublin senior football team | 1990s, 2000s |
Two of the closest codes, they share some similar skills. Until 1995 union was "officially amateur" and union players were offered money to switch codes. That trend has since reversed. Conversion from one code to the other is more difficult for forwards rather than backs where the similarities are most adjacent. It is worth noting that several players, including Iestyn Harris and Mat Rogers, have converted between the two codes on more than one occasion.
Rugby union and American football share the same origins, but have evolved into very different games. Both are very physical and require similar body types.
In recent years, several schoolboy rugby union players have made a transition to Australian Rules, including Ray Smith (Queensland Under 19), Jim Stynes, Lewis Roberts-Thomson, Adam Campbell (New Zealand Under 15), Daniel Merrett, Brad Moran (West Midlands (England) Under 16) and Tom Williams (Queensland Under 16).
| Name | Country | Top Rugby union | Top Aussie rules level | Top representation level | Rugby Union Debut | Australian Rules Debut |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mike Pyke | Canada | Top 14 (France) | AFL, Sydney Swans | Canada (rugby) | 2002 | 2009 |
| Karmichael Hunt | New Zealand, Australia | Top 14, Biarritz Olympique | AFL, Gold Coast | 2009 | 2011 |
In recent years, several junior and schoolboy rugby league players have made a transition to Australian rules, including Wayne Carey,[17] Paul Kelly,[18] Kieren Jack,[19] Michael McLean,[20] Andrew McLeod,[20] Jared Brennan,[20] Matthew Whelan,[20] and Sam Gilbert.[21]
Former NRL and Australia representative Israel Folau is now contracted to the Greater Western Sydney Football Club after switching codes.[22]
| Name | Country | Top rugby league level | Top Aussie Rules level | Top representation level | Rugby League Debut | Australian Rules Debut |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ray Smith[23] | Australia | Queensland Rugby League | VFL[24] | Queensland (RL) | 1970 | 1971 |
| Fabian Francis | Australia | Northern Territory Rugby League | Australian Football League | Northern Territory (RL) / Aboriginal All-Stars (AR) | 1992 | 1993 |
| Karmichael Hunt | Australia | National Rugby League | Australian Football League | Australian Kangaroos (RL) | 2004 | 2009 |