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International

NZR condition delays Richie Mo’unga’s All Blacks eligibility

By Ned Lester

3 days ago

Toshiba Brave Lupus Tokyo's Richie Mo'unga looks on after the Rugby League One 2024-25 play-offs final between Toshiba Brave Lupus Tokyo and Kubota Spears Funabashi Tokyo Bay at the National Stadium in Tokyo on June 1, 2025. (Photo by Philip FONG / AFP)

Richie Mo’unga’s return to New Zealand shores is locked in, but several questions remain: to what extent and when will his return impact the international game? We now have some insight into the latter of the two.

With 13 professional club titles under his belt, Mo’unga has dominated the worlds of NPC, Super Rugby and now Japan’s League One. However, the playmaker has been missing from the international arena since taking up a contract in Tokyo following the 2023 Rugby World Cup, with New Zealand Rugby holding firm on All Blacks eligibility criteria that have ruled the playmaker unavailable for national duties while plying his trade overseas.

And while pen has been put to paper with NZR, the Crusaders, and Canterbury, Mo’unga is still under contract with Toshiba Brave Lupus Tokyo for the next 11 months. The new NZR contract period will then commence in July 2026, as was the case with Leicester Fainga’anuku’s recent return.

However, that doesn’t guarantee instant reinstatement of All Blacks eligibility, as was highlighted by Fainga’anuku’s reintroduction to the New Zealand Rugby ecosystem.

The powerhouse utility back had his hopes of a Rugby Championship call-up dashed by NZR, who claimed his limited record of service within New Zealand prior to him leaving for France didn’t meet their threshold for immediate All Blacks availability.

Following the announcement of Mo’unga’s impending return, NZR CEO Mark Robinson joined local radio station Newstalk ZB to discuss the 31-year-old’s contract and eligibility situation.

“He’ll be available for the All Blacks in the latter part of 2026, and the exact dates on that aren’t clear yet because the calendar is yet to be finalised. That’ll be announced hopefully in the next two or three months, and we’ll know more then,” he told D’Arcy Waldergrave.

New Zealand Rugby were willing to discuss an earlier return to the international fold, but their asking price was a longer contract than the 18-month period Mo’unga was prepared to sign on for.

“This is the reality of the policy we have, and that was part of the discussions we had about the length of contract. If we’d had a longer agreement, then that would have been a possibility. But all parties were really clear that if it was a shorter-term contract like that, that was the agreement we’d have. He’d come in and be available for the All Blacks later in 2026.”

Robinson acknowledged the speculation around the 56-cap All Black’s return and NZR’s pursuit of him, and went on to state that contract negotiations have only picked up since April of this year.

Mystery still surrounds the 2026 calendar as details of the Nations Championship and a revived, longer-format All Blacks tour of South Africa are yet to be finalised, but what is clear is that Mo’unga will play one season of Super Rugby and regain All Blacks eligibility in time for the 2027 Rugby World Cup.

Comments

115 Comments

BleedRed&Black 2 days ago

Latest quote from Wellington's Post newspaper

"Mo’unga’s agent, Cameron McIntyre, told The Post that the playmaker wanted to return to the All Blacks “as soon as possible” and was open to further talks about how to make that happen, but was fully aware throughout the negotiations that the shorter-term contract would mean a delayed re-entry."

Meaning, they're waiting for CEO Mark Robinson to leave the building at the end of 2025 before they push harder.

And of course for the pressure to build in relation to the tour to South Africa.

And the First Nations Cup, which NZR will be desperate to win.

And the arbitrary/absurd decision to have a two RWC All Black in a vital position sitting in the stands in 2026 even though he has signed through to RWC 2027, while another two RWC AB, Ardie Savea, has just had his second sabbatical in the same overseas competition, yet is immediately available for the AB's. And is also only signed to through to RWC 2027.

When questions start being asked about Robinson's role in the disastrous negotiations with Toshiba about Mo'unga's return for the full 2026 season, which collapsed because NZR publicised the idea that the deal was done when it was actually in its first stages, is the new CEO actually going to defend Robinson's last [and hopefully final] fiasco when the pressure begins in 2026?

JW 2 days ago

Mark Robinson is a changer, and new age CEO, if anybody was going to change policy for Mo’unga, it was him.

IkeaBoy 2 days ago

“Mystery still surrounds the 2026 calendar as details of the Nations Championship…”

Very strange. The pre-sale is already open for the 2027 RWC but nobody seems to be able to definitely confirm if the Nations Cup is still even a real thing?

What could be the reasons behind the scenes for such silence?

JW 2 days ago

Supposedly there was a new global season coming out next year according to Nick Bishop, hard to see that given that next years season is starting in a few weeks!

It might all be starting with the interruption to the Rugby Championship, and a desire to make it better than the Super Rugby Trans-Tasman model was, which leads into the next seasons Nov tours.

Ideally you would want 11 games in the NC, with hemispheres recording results against each other, and a true top 2 final, not what is planned with only 6 games against the other hempisphere and a North v South final which could be onesided.

We can’t have that each time of course because the 6N refuses to budge by introducing relegation, but I at least hope the delay is due to some complexity at least in the NC itinerary. Otherwise it’s a very boring good v bad match up. A lot of changes next year but can’t see why they’d affect the July/November windows otherwise.

TokoRFC 2 days ago

Very interesting that money wasn’t the deal breaker for NZR bringing him back early, Robinson says it was the length of his return contract. I actually agree with NZR’s decision to not let him pop back and use another RWC for the AB’s to pad out his CV so he can get even more cash overseas straight after. Signing on to the lions in 2029 would be loyalty.

That’s nothing against Mounga the player, more a criticism of his manager. I wish he was back earlier and eligible. At the moment no-one is certain about what level hes at, I’m sure its high, but will he be at his 2023 form in 2027?

Now he’s got a short lead up to 2027 that reduces the continuity in the ABs until then and has created uncertainty for the other 10s in the squad. This is in the most important position in the side, it can’t be ideal for performance, but we’ll just have to see.

JW 2 days ago

Dmac will be 34 come Lions, despite what NZR would want (and have done with Barrett), Mo’unga probably saw the lunacy in NZRs attempt, given that he would have been 35 by then.

He is also much more line the NZ winger age problem, where he relies heavily on his guile and agility off the mark, which is going to be the first thing to go with age. Perhaps he already feels it happening.

But yes, that shouldn’t affect NZRs stance either I agree, he still could have committed to a drop in salary after 2027, and stayed on in NZ and qualified to have a more meaningful next two years.

YeowNotEven 2 days ago

They will bring him straight into the ABs off the plane. They will exempt him. You don’t put in this much effort and money to secure a guy then follow some asinine rule about NPC games or something and rob yourself of time to get your asset at their best for the World Cup.

That’s my guess anyway. Mo’unga will be treated differently.

JW 2 days ago

Who’s saying they put effort and money into signing him? It sounds like the exact opposite, having had two prior meetings with him and Toshiba that eventuated into nothing.

SS 2 days ago

He won’t sign for longer because he will go to R360 straight after the World Cup. We are just a stepping stone for him.

JW 2 days ago

Dmac was offered 10 mil the talk is telling!

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