Louis Rees-Zammit

Louis Rees-Zammit (/ˈluːɪs/ LOO-iss; born 2 February 2001) is a Welsh professional American football running back for the Kansas City Chiefs of the National Football League (NFL) and a former rugby union player. He played as a winger for Gloucester in the English Premiership. He played for Wales at an international level, scoring 14 tries in 32 caps. Rees-Zammit won the 2021 Six Nations Championship with Wales and he was subsequently named in the squad for the 2021 British & Irish Lions tour to South Africa.

Louis Rees-Zammit
Rees-Zammit in 2023
Born (2001-02-02) 2 February 2001
Penarth, Vale of Glamorgan, Wales
American football career
No. 9 – Kansas City Chiefs
Position:Running back
Personal information
Height:6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)
Weight:194 lb (88 kg)
Career information
High school:The Cathedral School, Llandaff
Hartpury College
Career history
 * Offseason and/or practice squad member only
Roster status:Active
Career NFL statistics
Player stats at NFL.com
Rugby union career
Position(s) Wing, Full-back
Youth career
Cardiff Blues
Hartpury College
Senior career
Years Team Apps (Points)
2018–2024 Gloucester 77 (210)
Correct as of 16 January 2024
International career
Years Team Apps (Points)
2019 Wales U18 5 (20)
2020–2023 Wales 32 (70)
2021 British & Irish Lions 0 (15)
Correct as of 16 January 2024

In January 2024, Rees-Zammit began training for the NFL's International Player Pathway Program. In March 2024, he signed with the Chiefs.

Early life

Rees-Zammit was born in Penarth, Vale of Glamorgan, Wales.[1] He attended The Cathedral School, Llandaff, and played rugby for the school.[2] He played youth rugby at the Cardiff Blues academy and was named in the Cardiff Schools Team of the Decade in 2020.[3] At 16 years old, he moved to Hartpury College and from there to the academy of Gloucester Rugby.[4]

Club career

Rees-Zammit broke into the Gloucester senior team in the 2019–20 season, becoming the club's youngest ever Premiership player at 18 years and 70 days.[5] Rees-Zammit would also become Gloucester's youngest European player and youngest European try scorer in 2019. He scored two tries against Worcester during a 36–3 win in December 2019,[6] and later the same month became the first 18-year-old to score a hat-trick of tries[7] during a 33–26 loss to Northampton.[8] He received the Premiership Player of the Month Award in December 2019.[9]

On 13 January 2020, Rees-Zammit signed his first professional contract with Gloucester, securing him to the club on a long-term deal.[10] Rees-Zammit ended his season with 12 tries in 15 appearances for the 2019–20 Premiership side.[11]

He made his first appearance of the 2021–22 Premiership scoring two tries in the Round 4 victory over Sale.[12] By the time he decided to leave the club in January 2024, he had made 77 club appearances scoring 210 points.[13]

International career

Wales

Rees-Zammit initially represented Wales under-18s.[4] He received his first call-up to the senior Wales squad, under coach Wayne Pivac, on 15 January 2020 for the 2020 Six Nations Championship.[14] He made his debut for Wales, from the bench, in a test match against France held at Stade de France in Paris, France, in October 2020.[15][16] Rees-Zammit scored his maiden test try against Georgia on 21 November 2020.[17]

He scored his first 2021 Six Nations Championship try, on his Six Nations debut, in the Round 1 match against Ireland on 7 February 2021.[18] On 13 February 2021, in the Six Nations match against Scotland, he scored two tries, including the winning try, and was named as man of the match.[19][lower-alpha 1] Wales went on to win the 2021 championship the next weekend giving Rees-Zammit his first Six Nations Championship. He also won the try of the Championship award.[21]

Rees-Zammit scored 14 tries at international level for Wales, including five at the 2023 Rugby World Cup.[22]

British & Irish Lions

On 6 May 2021, Rees-Zammit was named in the squad for the 2021 British & Irish Lions tour to South Africa.[23] Rees-Zammit's inclusion made him the youngest Lion selected since the 1959 Lions tour to Australia and New Zealand at the age of 20 years and 93 days.[24] Rees-Zammit made his first Lions appearance in the tours opening provincial game against the Lions, scoring the opening try after 3 minutes.[25] Rees-Zammit was then selected to play against the Sharks in the following game, again getting in the scoresheet as the Lions ran out 54–7 winners.[26] Rees-Zammit scored as a replacement in the final provincial game of the tour on 17 July 2021 against the Stormers, taking his tour tally to three tries in four appearances.[27][28]

International tries
Try Opponent Location Venue Competition Date Result
1 GeorgiaLlanelli, WalesParc y ScarletsAutumn Nations Cup21 November 2020Win
2 IrelandCardiff, WalesMillennium Stadium2021 Six Nations7 February 2021Win
3 ScotlandEdinburgh, ScotlandMurrayfield Stadium2021 Six Nations13 February 2021Win
4
5 ItalyRome, ItalyStadio Olimpico2021 Six Nations13 March 2021Win
6 FijiCardiff, WalesMillennium Stadium2021 Autumn Internationals14 November 2021Win
7 South AfricaPretoria, South AfricaLoftus Versfeld Stadium2022 Tour of South Africa2 July 2022Loss
8
9 EnglandCardiff, WalesMillennium Stadium2023 Six Nations25 February 2023Loss
10 FijiBordeaux, FranceStade de Bordeaux2023 Rugby World Cup10 September 2023Win
11 PortugalNice, FranceStade de Nice2023 Rugby World Cup16 September 2023Win
12 GeorgiaNantes, FranceStade de la Beaujoire2023 Rugby World Cup7 October 2023Win
13
14

American football career

On 16 January 2024, Rees-Zammit announced that he would leave rugby union to train in American football through the National Football League's International Player Pathway Program.[29]

On 29 March 2024, Rees-Zammit signed a contract with the Kansas City Chiefs to play running back.[30]

Personal life

Rees-Zammit is the nephew of Paul Rees, a former rugby union player who played as a full-back for Cardiff, Pontypool and Wales B.[31] His paternal grandfather emigrated from Malta.[32]

He has dated social media influencer and YouTuber Saffron Barker.[33] In March 2024, Barker announced that the relationship had ended.[34]

Rees-Zammit appeared in season 1 of the Netflix documentary Six Nations: Full Contact.[35]

Notes
  1. On 21 March, in the Round 5 Grand Slam decider, against France, Rees-Zammit had a try disallowed, following analysis by the TMO Wayne Barnes, when the ball was judged to have been grounded on the base of the corner flag.[20]

References
  1. Howell, Andy (16 August 2020). "The Louis Rees-Zammit interview: I definitely want a Wales debut this autumn". WalesOnline. Retrieved 13 February 2021.
  2. Thomas, Simon (16 January 2020). "The story of the little boy who grew up to be Welsh rugby's next big thing and the brother who has his back". Wales Online.
  3. "Another Day, Another Honour For Louis Rees-Zammit". 14 January 2020. Retrieved 1 April 2024.
  4. "Who is Louis Rees_Zammit". 2 April 2019. Retrieved 21 December 2019.
  5. "Louis Rees-Zammit becomes Gloucester Rugby's youngest Premiership player". Retrieved 22 December 2019.
  6. "Gloucester's teenage sensation Louis Rees-Zammit continues remarkable rise by inspiring win over Worcester". The Independent. 21 December 2019. Retrieved 22 December 2019.
  7. "Louis Rees-Zammit set a new Premiership record in Gloucester Rugby loss at Northampton Saints". 28 December 2019. Retrieved 31 December 2019.
  8. "Welsh teen sensation Louis Rees-Zammit set to force his way into Six Nations squad after stunning hat-trick of tries". 28 December 2019. Retrieved 28 December 2019.
  9. "Louis Rees-Zammit named English rugby's player of the month and immediately donates prize to Welsh cancer centre". Wales online. 8 January 2020. Retrieved 20 January 2020.
  10. "LOUIS REES-ZAMMIT EXTENDS HIS CONTRACT AT GLOUCESTER RUGBY". Gloucester Rugby. 13 January 2020. Retrieved 27 August 2020.
  11. "Louis Rees-Zammit 'devastated' not to get a chance to play for Wales in the 2020 Six Nations". gloucestershirelive.co.uk. 27 July 2020. Retrieved 31 March 2024.
  12. Rindl, Josef (9 October 2021). "Premiership: Gloucester 33-32 Sale - Cherry and Whites edge thriller over Sharks". BBC Sport. Retrieved 28 March 2024.
  13. "Louis Rees-Zammit - Player statistics - It's rugby". www.itsrugby.co.uk. Retrieved 1 April 2024.
  14. "Six Nations: Wales call up teenager Rees-Zammit and Saracens' Tompkins". BBC Sport. 15 January 2020. Retrieved 15 January 2020.
  15. "France vs Wales: Alun Wyn Jones to equal Test record, Louis Rees-Zammit set for debut". Sky Sports. 22 October 2020. Retrieved 24 October 2020.
  16. "France 38-21 Wales: Antoine Dupont inspires home side in Paris". BBC Sport. 24 October 2020. Retrieved 24 October 2020.
  17. World, Rugby (21 November 2020). "Louis Rees-Zammit gets his first Test try". Rugby World.
  18. "Rees-Zammit scores try on Six Nations debut as Wales hold off 14-man Ireland". 7 February 2021. Retrieved 13 February 2021.
  19. "Scotland 24-25 Wales: Visitors roar to narrow victory at Murrayfield". bbc.com. 13 February 2021. Retrieved 1 April 2024.
  20. "France 32-30 Wales: Brice Dulin snatches last-gasp Six Nations win for hosts to deny visitors the Grand Slam". skysports.com. 21 March 2021. Retrieved 1 April 2024.
  21. "REES-ZAMMIT WINS GUINNESS SIX NATIONS TRY OF THE CHAMPIONSHIP". 5 April 2021. Retrieved 31 March 2024.
  22. "Louis Rees-Zammit profile". rugbyworldcup.com. Retrieved 31 March 2024.
  23. "British and Irish Lions 2021: Sam Simmonds in 37-man squad but Billy Vunipola misses out". BBC Sport. 6 May 2021. Retrieved 6 May 2021.
  24. "Rugby-Rees-Zammit becomes youngest Lion in more than 60 years". Reuters. 6 May 2021.
  25. "Louis Rees-Zammit scores four minutes into Lions debut". rugbyworld.com. 3 July 2021.
  26. Mairs, Gavin; Goodwill, Jake (7 July 2021). "Duhan van der Merwe and Josh Adams score hat-tricks as Covid-hit Lions put opponents to the sword". The Telegraph.
  27. British and Irish Lions (2021). "Louis Rees-Zammit (B&I Lions)". lionsrugby.com.
  28. "Stormers 3-49 British and Irish Lions: Tourists complete Test preparations with comfortable win". bbc.com. 17 July 2021. Retrieved 31 March 2024.
  29. "Louis Rees-Zammit: Wales and Gloucester winger to quit rugby to play American football". BBC Sport. Retrieved 16 January 2024.
  30. "Welsh rugby star Louis Rees-Zammit turns to NFL and signs with Kansas City Chiefs". NBC News. 29 March 2024. Retrieved 29 March 2024.
  31. "Another Day, Another Honour For Louis Rees-Zammit". Dai Sport. 14 January 2020. Retrieved 29 March 2024.
  32. "Rees-Lightning! Wales' Rising Rugby Star Is A 19-Year-Old Kid With Maltese Blood". Lovin Malta. 23 February 2020. Retrieved 13 February 2021.
  33. "Louis Rees-Zammit dating social media influencer and Strictly contestant". Wales Online. 11 November 2023.
  34. "Louis Rees-Zammit officially splits with girlfriend Saffron Barker as statement issued". walesonline.co.uk. 21 March 2024.
  35. "Full Contact: Six storylines to follow from the Netflix series at the 2024 Six Nations". Sky Sports. Retrieved 1 February 2024.
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