List of players who have converted from one football code to another
There are many footballers who have converted from one football code to another at a professional or representative level. In some cases, the player may also return to the original code, so the traffic is not merely one way.
In some countries, such as the United Kingdom, Ireland and Australia where multiple codes are popular and the practice of switching codes is relatively common such players are known as code converts or code hoppers. In Australia, star code converts can have a substantial impact on the games. For instance, Dally Messenger's defection from rugby union to rugby league was considered a pivotal moment in the establishment of the latter over other codes in Australia.
Globalisation is increasing the opportunities for players to transfer to different countries and to different professional sports, including the forms of football.
From American football
American football to association football
American football to Australian rules football
American football to Canadian football
American football and Canadian football are very similar gridiron codes; talented Canadian youth players are often recruited by American universities offering scholarships, and conversely the Canadian Football League enforces roster minimums for Canadian-trained players to prevent its clubs from fielding American-dominated teams. The CFL and NFL competed for the same player pool in their earlier years before the CFL settled into a de facto developmental role to its American counterpart. Dozens of professional players move between these codes' top professional leagues every year, making any attempt at a list incomplete at best.Two quarterbacks in particular became well known in both codes. Warren Moon, a California native who starred at the University of Washington, began his professional career with the Edmonton Eskimos before crossing the border back south to the Houston Oilers and later Minnesota Vikings, earning Hall of Fame recognition in both professional leagues. Doug Flutie, who authored a comeback win for Boston College considered an iconic moment in the history of American college football, played a long CFL career that led to him being the first non-Canadian honored with induction to Canada's Sports Hall of Fame before a brief NFL comeback.
American football to rugby league
American football to rugby union
NB:- Isles made the Detroit Lions practice squad late in the 2013 season, after having become a sevens international. However, he never appeared in an NFL game, and has since signed a professional contract in 15s.
- 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.
From association football
Association football to American football
Numerous American football placekickers grew up playing association football ; 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.Most of the women to have played men's American football have crossed over from association football.
Association football to Australian rules football
Following the establishment of AFL Women's in 2016, several Australian soccer players switched codes.Association football to Gaelic football
Association football to rugby league
- St Helens R.F.C. players Steve Tyrer and Matty Smith were on the books at Wigan Athletic and Everton F.C. respectively. Tyrer was a goalkeeper and Smith was a midfielder, the latter appearing in the Everton reserve team on a few occasions.
Association football to rugby union
- Luke McAlister, a New Zealand international rugby union footballer, grew up in the north-west of England and had a trial with Manchester United before converting to rugby union at an early age.
- The late Nevin Spence, former Ulster and Ireland A player, played for Northern Ireland under 16s before switching to rugby.
- Loreto Cucchiarelli former player-coach of the Italian rugby union team, played football for Lazio at a young age.
- Conrad Jantjes played for the youth national team of South Africa in soccer, rugby union and cricket.
- Brothers Kevin O'Flanagan and Mick O'Flanagan represented Ireland in both soccer and rugby union.
- Kenny Logan, Scottish rugby internationalist had Football trials as a goalkeeper for Dundee United and Hearts.
- England international Danny Cipriani played on the junior team of Queens Park Rangers and was offered a spot in Reading's youth setup before switching to rugby. Even after his switch, he has flirted with a return to association football, having trained with QPR, Tottenham, the Colorado Rapids, and most recently MK Dons.
- Melissa Ruscoe has not only represented New Zealand in both soccer and rugby union, but has captained both sides.
- 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.
- Wesley Fofana, a France international rugby union player, grew up in the Paris region of France and trained as a youth with CFF Paris before switching to rugby union as a teenager.
From Australian rules football
Australian rules football to American football
Notably, the specialist role of punter in American football requires similar skills to those found in Australian football players.| Name | Country | Top Australian rules level | Top American football level | Australian rules debut | American football debut |
| Pat O'Dea | Australia | Victorian Football Association | College football | 1890s | 1896 |
| Colin Ridgeway | Australia | Victorian Football League reserves | National Football League | 1960s | 1965 |
| Darren Bennett | Australia | Australian Football League | National Football League | 1982 | 1995 |
| Nathan Chapman | Australia | Australian Football League | National Football League | 1992 | 2004 |
| Ben Graham | Australia | Australian Football League | National Football League | 1992 | 2005 |
| Saverio Rocca | Australia | Australian Football League | National Football League | 1992 | 2007 |
| Chris Bryan | Australia | Australian Football League | National Football League | 2005 | 2010 |
| Scott Harding | Australia | Australian Football League | NCAA Division I | 2006 | 2011 |
| Joel Wilkinson | Australia | Australian Football League | National Football League | 2011 | 2016 |
| Eric Wallace | United States | Victorian Football League | National Football League | 2013 | 2016 |
| Lac Edwards | Australia | Victorian Football League | National Football League | 2011 | 2016 |
| Jacinda Barclay | Australia | West Australian Women's Football League | Legends Football League | 2016 | 2017 |
| Cameron Johnston | Australia | Victorian Football League | National Football League | 2011 | 2018 |
| Michael Dickson | Australia | North East Australian Football League | National Football League | 2014 | 2018 |
| Ben Griffiths | Australia | Australian Football League | NCAA Division I | 2010 | 2019 |
| Ben Lennon | Australia | Australian Football League | NCAA Division I | 2014 | 2019 |
| Arryn Siposs | Australia | Australian Football League | National Football League | 2011 | 2018 |
| Max Duffy | Australia | Australian Football League | NCAA Division I | 2013 | 2018 |
Australian rules football to association football
participation provides experience with the round ball and goal keeping.As well as the players below, players known to have played amateur level soccer after retiring from the AFL include Gary Ablett, James Hird, Gavin Wanganeen, Glenn Manton and Ang Christou.
Australian rules football to Canadian football
Notably, the specialist role of punter in Canadian football requires similar skills to those found in Australian football players.Australian rules football to Gaelic football
Some players involved in the Irish Experiment to play professional Australian rules football returned to Ireland and went on to be notable in senior level Gaelic football. Such players have included:Australian rules football to rugby league
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. 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, particularly in areas where both codes are played. Though the modern specialist and positions in rugby league can be suitable for the body type and skill of some Australian rules players. League greats Darren Lockyer, Glenn Lazarus, Greg Brentnall, Peter Sterling, Marcus Bai and Kevin Proctor played Aussie Rules at a junior level.Australian rules football to rugby union
was the first professional Australian football player to suggest a switch to rugby union. Nevertheless, there are still some positions and roles that have commonalities.Also at amateur level, conversion is quite common, as in the case of many start-up Australian rules clubs in countries such as France and countries such as New Zealand and Samoa where there are dual-internationals at junior level.
From Canadian football
Canadian football to American football
As discussed above, Canadian and American football are highly similar gridiron codes. Dozens if not hundreds of players and coaches move back and forth between Canadian and American codes every season and occasionally even within a season, making assembling a list of these players an impossible and largely immaterial task.From Gaelic football
Gaelic football is especially vulnerable to code-switching, for reasons outlined by rugby union journalist Hugh Farrelly in 2009:Gaelic football to association football
Ladies' Gaelic football to association football
Several ladies Gaelic footballers, including All-Ireland finalists, Niamh Fahey and Sarah Rowe, have gone on to represent the Republic of Ireland women's national association football team.Gaelic football to Australian rules football
These two codes share many similarities, making switching between them relatively easy. 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.
Ladies' Gaelic football to Australian rules football
Gaelic football to rugby league
Gaelic football to rugby union
Up until the mid-1990s, both codes were officially amateur. However, the professionalisation of rugby union has provided a financial lure.NB: Byrne and Duffy both changed codes twice. Each first switched to rugby union as a teenager, then returned to Gaelic football after a long professional rugby career. This entry discusses their Gaelic football careers before their first code switch.
Ladies' Gaelic football to rugby union
played for Dublin in the 2009, 2010 and 2014 All-Ireland finals before playing for Ireland in the 2017 Women's Rugby World Cup. The Ireland squad featured at least six other former ladies' inter-county footballers – Niamh Briggs, Claire Molloy, Cliodhna Moloney, Katie Fitzhenry, Nora Stapleton and Hannah Tyrrell.From rugby league
Rugby league to American football
On 3 March 2015 Jarryd Hayne became the first rugby league player to sign a contract with a National Football League team.| Name | Country | Top rugby league level | Top American football level | Top representation level | Rugby league debut | American football debut |
| Manfred Moore | USA | New South Wales Rugby League | National Football League | N/A | 1977 | 1978 |
| Jarryd Hayne | Australia | National Rugby League | National Football League | Australia Fiji | 2006 | 2015 |
| Jordan Mailata | Australia | National Youth Competition | National Football League | N/A | 2017 | 2018 |
| Valentine Holmes | Australia | National Rugby League | National Football League | Australia | 2014 | 2019 |
Rugby league to association football
Rugby league to Australian rules football
In recent years, several junior and schoolboy rugby league players have made a transition to Australian rules, including Wayne Carey, Paul Kelly, Kieren Jack, Michael McLean, Andrew McLeod, Jared Brennan, Matthew Whelan, and Sam Gilbert.| Name | Country | Top rugby league level | Top Australian rules level | Top representation level | Rugby league debut | Australian rules debut |
| Ray Smith | Australia | Brisbane Rugby League | Victorian Football League | Queensland Queensland | 1970 | 1971 |
| Fabian Francis | Australia | Northern Territory Rugby League | Australian Football League | Northern Territory Aboriginal All-Stars | 1992 | 1993 |
| Israel Folau | Australia | National Rugby League | Australian Football League | Australia | 2007 | 2010 |
| Ben Barba | Australia | National Rugby League | AFL Mackay | Australia | 2008 | 2020 |
Rugby league to rugby union
While the traffic used to be almost entirely from rugby union to rugby league, the tide has now turned the other way, and numerous rugby league players have gone over to union, since the game was professionalised.| Name | Country | Top rugby league level | Top rugby union level | Top representation level | Rugby league debut | Rugby union debut |
| Josh Charnley | England | Super League | Aviva Premiership | England | 2010 | 2016 |
| Sam Burgess | England | National Rugby League, Super League | Aviva Premiership | England, Great Brittan, NRL All-Stars, England | 2006 | 2014 |
| Reece Robinson | Lebanon, Australia | National Rugby League | Super Rugby | Lebanon, Indigenous All-Stars | 2008 | 2016 |
| Matt Duffie | New Zealand | National Rugby League | Super Rugby | New Zealand, New Zealand | 2010 | 2016 |
| Karmichael Hunt | New Zealand, Australia | National Rugby League | Top 14, Super Rugby | Australia, Australia | 2004 | 2009 |
| Chris Ashton | England | Super League | English Premiership | England, England | 2005 | 2007 |
| Lee Smith | England | Super League | English Premiership | England, Great Britain | 2005 | 2009 |
| Berrick Barnes | Australia | NRL | Super Rugby | Australia | 2005 | 2006 |
| Nathan Blacklock | Australia | NRL/Super League | Super 12 | Australia | 1995 | 2003 |
| Willie Carne | Australia | NRL | Super Rugby | Australia | 1990 | 1997 |
| Brian Carney | Ireland | Super League/NRL | Celtic League | Great Britain, Ireland | 1999 | 2007 |
| Ryan Cross | Australia | NRL | Super Rugby | Australia | 1998 | 2007 |
| Andy Farrell | England | Super League | English Premiership | Great Britain, England | 1991 | 2005 |
| Paul Franze | Australia | NRL | English Premiership | Australia | 2002 | 2006 |
| Iestyn Harris | Wales | Super League | Heineken Cup, Celtic League | Great Britain, Wales | 1993 | 2001 |
| Sam Harris | Australia | NRL | Super Rugby | Australian Schoolboys, City v. Country | 2003 | 2007 |
| Wise Kativerata | Australia | NRL | Shute Shield | Australia Sevens | 2001 | 2004 |
| Ben MacDougall | Australia | NRL | Celtic League | Scotland | 1998 | 2006 |
| Stephen Myler | England | Super League | English Premiership | England Saxons | 2001 | 2006 |
| Henry Paul | New Zealand | NRL | English Premiership | New Zealand, England | 1993 | 2001 |
| Jason Robinson | England | Super League | English Premiership | Great Britain, England, British & Irish Lions | 1991 | 1996 |
| Mat Rogers | Australia | NRL | Super Rugby | Australia | 1995 | 2002 |
| Wendell Sailor | Australia | NRL | Super Rugby | Australia | 1993 | 2002 |
| Clinton Schifcofske | Australia | NRL/Super League | Super Rugby | State of Origin, Australia A | 1996 | 2006 |
| Timana Tahu | Australia | NRL | Super Rugby | Australia | 1999 | 2008 |
| Alan Tait | Scotland | Super League | Celtic League | Scotland, Great Britain, British & Irish Lions | 1988 | 1996 |
| Brad Thorn | Australia | NRL | Super Rugby | Australia, New Zealand | 1994 | 2001 |
| Lote Tuqiri | Australia | NRL | Super Rugby | Australia, Fiji | 1999 | 2003 |
| Lesley Vainikolo | England | NRL, Super League | English Premiership | New Zealand, England | 2002 | 2007 |
| Andrew Walker | Australia | NRL | Super Rugby | Australia | 1991 | 2000 |
| Chev Walker | England | Super League | English Premiership | Great Britain, England Saxons | 1999 | 2007 |
| Barrie-Jon Mather | England | RFL Championship/Super League | England RU | Great Britain, England, England | 1992 | 1998 |
| Sonny Bill Williams | New Zealand | NRL | Top 14, Super Rugby | New Zealand, New Zealand | 2004 | 2008 |
| Craig Wing | Australia | NRL | Top League | Australian Kangaroos, Japan | 2002 | 2010 |
| Craig Gower | Australia | NRL | Top 14 | Australian Kangaroos, Italy | 1996 | 2008 |
| Mark Gasnier | Australia | NRL | Top 14 | Australian Kangaroos | 2000 | 2008 |
| Shontayne Hape | New Zealand | NRL, Super League | English Premiership | New Zealand Kiwis, England | 2003 | 2008 |
| Fabrice Estebanez | France | Super League | Top 14 | France, France | 2005 | 2010 |
| Tasesa Lavea | New Zealand | NRL | Super rugby, Top 14 | New Zealand Kiwis, Samoa | 2000 | 2010 |
| Cooper Vuna | New Zealand | NRL | Super rugby | Tonga, Australia, Tonga | 2008 | 2012 |
| Setaimata Sa | New Zealand, Samoa | NRL, Super League | English Premiership | New Zealand Kiwis, Samoa, Samoa | 2008 | 2012 |
| Peter Ryan | Australia | NRL | Super Rugby | Queensland | 1989 | 2000 |
| Jarrod Saffy | Australia | NRL | Super Rugby | Australia Sevens | 2006 | 2011 |
From rugby union
Rugby union to American football
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.Rugby union to association football
Rugby union to Australian rules football
In recent years, several schoolboy rugby union players have made a transition to Australian Rules, including Ray Smith, Jim Stynes, Lewis Roberts-Thomson, Aaron Edwards, Adam Campbell, Daniel Merrett, Brad Moran and Tom Williams.In 2012, Canadian Mike Pyke became the first former professional rugby player to win an AFL premiership.