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England-qualified Hoskins Sotutu seals PREM switch - report
By Ian Cameron
Cashed-up Gallagher PREM side Newcastle Red Bulls have signed Blues No.8 Hoskins Sotutu, who is set to arrive at Kingston Park on a three-year deal, according to Telegraph Sport.
The 27-year-old has 14 caps for the All Blacks but is English-qualified through his mother and is expected to switch allegiance.
RugbyPass had reported in October how there was renewed interest from PREM clubs in the back-row, with a possible England Test switch having been mooted for years. His decision to decline the opportunity for an All Blacks recall for the autumn tour of Europe was seen by many as the ‘come-get-me’ signal that sealed his UK move.
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Sotutu is expected to link up with the Red Bulls either in pre-season ahead of 2026/27 or after New Zealand’s NPC campaign next November, with talks apparently ongoing between Newcastle and the Blues regarding his release date.
The Telegraph report says he will not be the club’s exempt “marquee” player.
The move immediately places Sotutu back on England’s radar. He has not played for New Zealand since the 25-25 draw at Twickenham in November 2022, meaning his three-year stand-down period is now complete.
He is also eligible for Fiji but switching to England would require only that he plays his club rugby for an English side, a criterion that a move to Newcastle would obviously satisfy. The prospect of an Enhanced Elite Player Squad contract, worth about £150,000 on top of his club contract, may well have made an English move the obvious choice.
Steve Borthwick could view the explosive 6’4, 112kg No.8 as a ready-made replacement for Tom Willis, who joins Bordeaux next season and has already been excluded from England training camps.
“I can’t say I had a chat [to Borthwick], but my agent went to work and explored options,” Sotutu told the New Zealand Herald earlier this year.
The deal follows on the back of England’s Benhard Janse van Rensburg, who will also become eligible from autumn 2026 following a ruling allowing him to switch from South Africa.
Sotutu’s capture is a major statement from Newcastle Red Bulls, who have been pushing to assemble a more competitive squad and are permitted to spend up to the full salary-cap limit next season.
The PREM strugglers recently brought in Crusaders back-rower Tom Christie, but landing a player of Sotutu’s profile signals a clear shift in ambition.
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