Petaia signs short-term Perpignan deal after NFL exit

Jordan Petaia, the 25-year-old, 31-test Wallaby, has signed a short-term deal with French Top 14 club Perpignan and is due to join the southern French side in October, weeks after his abrupt exit from the NFL with the Los Angeles Chargers. The move keeps the door open for a return to Australian rugby and potential selection for the 2027 Rugby World Cup on home soil, his representatives and coaches said.

Petaia left the Queensland Reds last year to pursue opportunities through the NFL International Player Pathway and had earlier this year signed a three-year contract with the Chargers. He was waived and placed on the injured reserve list after a hamstring problem curtailed his NFL campaign, and no other NFL clubs emerged as suitors, according to reports. The Perpignan deal has been described in different accounts as a nine-month or one-year contract, with those reports noting the Top 14 season runs through late spring, a timing that could influence his availability for Super Rugby in 2026.

Les Kiss, who will take over as Wallabies coach at the end of the 2026 Super Rugby season and currently coaches the Queensland Reds, said Petaia would always be welcome back in Brisbane. Kiss...