Louis Rees-Zammit Bio
Louis Rees-Zammit is a Welsh professional rugby union player who plays as a wing for Bristol Bears in Premiership Rugby. Born on 2 February 2001 in Penarth, Vale of Glamorgan, Wales, he previously pursued American football with the Kansas City Chiefs and Jacksonville Jaguars organizations. Rees-Zammit represented Wales at international level and was selected for the British and Irish Lions tour of South Africa in 2021. He returned to professional rugby union in August 2025 after an 18-month stint in the NFL, signing with Bristol Bears for the 2025-26 season.
Early Life and Background
Louis Rees-Zammit was born on 2 February 2001 in Penarth, Vale of Glamorgan, Wales. His paternal grandfather had emigrated from Malta. His parents were athletes and his brother played rugby union for Llandaff RFC while his uncle Paul Rees played as a full-back for Cardiff RFC, Pontypool RFC and the Wales B team. Louis’s father Joe played American football for Cardiff Bay Tigers and inspired Louis to follow the NFL from a young age. The family supported the Washington Redskins (now Washington Commanders), and Louis’s favourite NFL player was DeSean Jackson. Rees-Zammit attended The Cathedral School, Llandaff, for which he played rugby during his secondary school years.
In 2021, due to Rees-Zammit’s success on the rugby field, he was chosen as the official patron for the British charity Sporting Minds UK, with which he had worked since 2019. He also did sponsorship work for the telecommunications firm Vodafone during the 2021 Lions tour of South Africa.
Path to American Football
Rees-Zammit’s journey to American football began with his father’s background in the sport. After establishing himself as a professional rugby player, he announced on 16 January 2024 that he would retire from rugby union to train in American football through the NFL’s International Player Pathway Program. His training camp took place at the IMG Academy in Bradenton, Florida, and the pro day took place on 20 March 2024. Prior to his professional NFL debut, he was already considered one of the league’s fastest athletes alongside John Ross and Chris Johnson, with a top speed of 24.2 miles per hour during a rugby game.
Louis Rees-Zammit Career
Youth Rugby
In his youth, Rees-Zammit played rugby at the Cardiff Blues academy and was named in the Cardiff Schools Team of the Decade for the 2010s. He was also a regular player in the Wales under-18s team, and qualified for the equivalent England team due to residency. In 2017, Rees-Zammit transferred to Hartpury College, the academy of Gloucester Rugby, in the AASE Championship, winning consecutive trophies. After leaving the college, he played for Gloucester United in 2019 before his promotion to the Gloucester professional team. As part of the Gloucester youth team, Rees-Zammit played in two consecutive Premiership Rugby U18 Academy League finals.
Gloucester Rugby (2018-2024)
Louis Rees-Zammit debuted in the Gloucester senior team in the 2018-2019 season, becoming the club’s youngest ever English Premiership player at 18 years and 70 days. He also became Gloucester’s youngest European player and youngest European try scorer in the pool stage of the Champions Cup in his debut season. In December 2019, he scored two tries against Worcester Warriors during a 36-3 win. Later the same month, at 18, he became the youngest player to score a hat-trick of tries in the Premiership during a 33-26 loss to Northampton, and his performances won him the Premiership Player of the Month Award for that month.
On 13 January 2020, Rees-Zammit signed his first professional contract with Gloucester. He ended his debut season in the 2019-20 Premiership with 15 appearances for the side and was awarded Gloucester’s Young Player of the Year award, scoring ten Premiership tries and three in the pool stage of the European Champions Cup. With continued form at Gloucester, British and Irish Lions coach Warren Gatland chose Rees-Zammit for the Lions’ 2021 South African tour. Gloucester reached the quarter-finals of the 2022 European Challenge Cup with Rees-Zammit scoring a try during the match, which they lost to Saracens.
During the 2022-23 Premiership Rugby season, his final full season with Gloucester, Rees-Zammit sustained an ankle injury and could not play for eight weeks until mid February 2023. On his return to fitness, he scored a try in a 28-26 home win over Harlequins. In this season, Rees-Zammit played 13 league games and scored four tries. In January 2024, Rees-Zammit decided to leave Gloucester, by which time he had made 77 club appearances and scored 210 points. He had attracted interest from French Top 14 clubs Bordeaux and Montpellier who offered him lucrative contracts.
Kansas City Chiefs (2024)
On 29 March 2024, Rees-Zammit signed a contract with the Kansas City Chiefs to play as a running back. He made his NFL preseason debut for the Chiefs on 11 August 2024 in a 26-13 pre-season loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars, running six times for 22 yards and catching one pass for three yards. During the pre-season on 26 August, the Chiefs re-signed JuJu Smith-Schuster who took Rees-Zammit’s assigned jersey number #9, and Rees-Zammit switched to jersey number #49.
Jacksonville Jaguars (2024-2025)
On 28 August 2024, Rees-Zammit became a free agent after failing to be chosen for the Chiefs’ initial 53-man roster during the final pre-season roster cuts. Later that day, he joined the Jacksonville Jaguars’ practice squad, taking jersey number #84. Rees-Zammit also changed positions from running back for the Chiefs to wide receiver for the Jaguars. As part of the squad, he returned to the UK for the NFL London Games in October 2024. During the journey, he had an interview with NFL commissioner Roger Goodell and also met William, Prince of Wales.
At the end of the 2024 season, Rees-Zammit’s contract was not renewed and he was made a free agent. However, a few days after his termination, a new contract offer was made by the Jaguars for the 2025 NFL season. On 17 February 2025, Jacksonville signed him to the active roster. Then at the end of April during the pre-season, Rees-Zammit was moved from the active roster to the exempt/international player list. On 31 July 2025, Rees-Zammit announced that he would be returning to rugby union following an 18-month stint in the NFL.
Bristol Bears (2025-Present)
In August 2025, having returned from his NFL career, Rees-Zammit signed for Premiership Rugby side Bristol Bears ahead of the 2025-26 season. His debut was confirmed by Bristol Bears’ director of rugby Pat Lam to play against Sale. On his league debut for Bristol, he scored a try in a 42-24 victory over Leicester Tigers.
International Career
As a Welsh national, Rees-Zammit initially represented Wales under-18s. He received his first full call-up to the senior Wales squad under coach Wayne Pivac on 15 January 2020 as a potential replacement for the 2020 Six Nations Championship. He made his test debut for Wales from the bench against France at the Stade de France in Paris in October 2020. Rees-Zammit scored his first test try against Georgia on 21 November 2020.
During the 2021 Six Nations, on 7 February 2021, Rees-Zammit scored his first try in the competition on his full European international debut against Ireland. On 13 February 2021, in the Six Nations match against Scotland, he scored two tries including the winning try and was named man of the match. Wales won the 2021 championship the next weekend, giving Rees-Zammit his first Six Nations Championship title. During the tournament, he also won the Try of the Championship award. At the end of the 2021 rugby season, Rees-Zammit was nominated for the World Rugby Men’s 15s Breakthrough Player of the Year award.
He played in three of the five Wales matches for the 2022 Six Nations Championship, having been dropped for the match against England. His success with Gloucester qualified him for Wales’ 2022 mid-year tour of South Africa. Rees-Zammit missed two of the five games Wales played in the 2023 Six Nations Championship. He was selected for Wales’ squad for the 2023 Rugby World Cup competition in France, scoring five tries in five appearances. In total, Rees-Zammit scored 14 tries at international level for Wales. He was named in the Wales squad for the 2026 Six Nations by Steve Tandy.
British and Irish Lions 2021
On 6 May 2021, Rees-Zammit was named in the squad for the British and Irish Lions tour of South Africa. His inclusion at the age of 20 years and 93 days made him the youngest player to be selected since the 1959 Lions tour to Australia and New Zealand. He made his Lions debut appearance in the tour’s opening provincial game against the club Lions, scoring the opening try after three minutes. He was selected to play against Sharks in the following game, again scoring a try as the Lions won 54-7. For the Lions’ team game against the South Africa A team, he was chosen as a starter. On 17 July, for the final provincial game of the tour, Rees-Zammit scored as a substitute during the game against the Stormers. His final tally for the tour was three tries in four appearances. The Lions lost the test series against the Springboks.
Louis Rees-Zammit Career Wins
Throughout his rugby career, Louis Rees-Zammit has accumulated numerous achievements at club and international level. At Gloucester, he made 77 appearances and scored 210 points over six seasons. He won the Premiership Player of the Month Award in December 2019 and was awarded Gloucester’s Young Player of the Year for the 2019-2020 season. At international level, he helped Wales win the 2021 Six Nations Championship and earned the Try of the Championship award. With the British and Irish Lions, he scored three tries in four appearances during the 2021 South Africa tour.
Six Nations Highlights
Rees-Zammit’s Six Nations career includes winning the 2021 Championship with Wales. He scored his first international try against Georgia in November 2020. In the 2021 Six Nations, he scored tries against Ireland and Scotland, including the match-winning try against Scotland where he was named man of the match. His tournament performance earned him the Try of the Championship award. During the 2023 Rugby World Cup, he scored five tries in five appearances for Wales.
Other Achievements
At youth level, Rees-Zammit was named in the Cardiff Schools Team of the Decade for the 2010s. He won consecutive trophies at Hartpury College in the AASE Championship. With Gloucester, he played in two consecutive Premiership Rugby U18 Academy League finals. He was patron for the British charity Sporting Minds UK and did sponsorship work for Vodafone during the 2021 Lions tour.
Louis Rees-Zammit Family
Family Background
Louis Rees-Zammit comes from a sporting family. His paternal grandfather had emigrated from Malta. His parents were athletes and his brother played rugby union for Llandaff RFC. His uncle Paul Rees played as a full-back for Cardiff RFC, Pontypool RFC and the Wales B team. Louis’s father Joe played American football for Cardiff Bay Tigers and inspired Louis to follow the NFL from a young age.
Personal Life
Rees-Zammit attended The Cathedral School, Llandaff. After secondary school, he dated the social-media influencer and YouTube content creator Saffron Barker, but in March 2024, Barker announced the relationship had ended. In 2021, due to Rees-Zammit’s success on the rugby field, he was chosen as the official patron for the British charity Sporting Minds UK.
2025 Season Performance
After an 18-month stint in the NFL, Louis Rees-Zammit returned to rugby union in August 2025. He signed for Bristol Bears ahead of the 2025-26 Premiership Rugby season. His debut for Bristol was confirmed by director of rugby Pat Lam to play against Sale. On his league debut, Rees-Zammit made an immediate impact by scoring a try in a 42-24 victory over Leicester Tigers. The move marked his return to professional rugby after exploring his NFL ambitions with the Kansas City Chiefs and Jacksonville Jaguars.
Following his return to rugby, Rees-Zammit was named in the Wales squad for the 2026 Six Nations Championship by head coach Steve Tandy. His prompt return to the Welsh national team setup demonstrated continued international recognition despite his American football adventure. The 2025-26 season with Bristol Bears represents a new chapter in his career as he looks to rebuild his rugby credentials at club level while maintaining his international ambitions with Wales.