Former England centre Manu Tuilagi has left the door open in terms of potentially switching his international allegiance to Samoa for the 2027 Rugby World Cup in Australia.
The 34-year-old centre, who picked up 60 Test caps for England between 2011 and 2024, is currently ineligible for Steve Borthwick’s side having made a move to play his club rugby with Bayonne in France’s Top 14 in the summer of 2024.
Tuilagi was born in Samoa and moved to England at the age of 13, progressing through the Leicester Tigers academy system.
Having last played for England in round five of the 2024 Six Nations against France, Tuilagi would be able to represent Samoa in 2027 following World Rugby’s three-year stand-down period.
Tuilagi would be 36 by the time the next World Cup rolls around, and admits while he would be ‘interested’ in representing Samoa, he will only do so if his body and form still holds up.
“It was all over social media when Samoa qualified,” Tuilagi said.
“For me it’s still a long way away and I don’t know if I’ll be able to make it. For me, it’s different between being interested and being able to compete.
“It’s a World Cup, it’s not a club competition. If you want to go, you want to make sure you go there to compete and not just go for the craic.
“I’ve been asked this question a lot. For me, interest is one thing and being realistic in how you perform is a different thing. We’ll see.”
The World Rugby rule, which came into force in 2022, requires a player to be out of international rugby for a minimum of 36 months before they can switch national allegiance, provided they meet other eligibility criteria. Eligibility to switch requires the player to either be born in the new country or have a parent or grandparent born there.
Five of Tuilagi’s brothers in Anitelea, Alesana, Henry, Vavae and Freddie represented Samoa during their rugby playing careers.
