Kiss confirmed as new Wallabies coach with a new takeover plan

Joe Schmidt will remain as Wallabies coach until next mid-2026 before Less Kiss takes over, Rugby Australia has confirmed.

Schmidt was to have finished up after this year’s Rugby Championship but RA was keen for “minimal disruption to the Australian rugby ecosystem” and for Kiss to complete his Super Rugby Pacific contract with the Queensland Reds in 2026.

“My intention to finish at the end of this year’s Rugby Championship has been adjusted to fit with Les’s availability,” Schmidt said.

“I think he’s doing a great job with the Reds, so it was important to dovetail with his responsibilities there.

“It has certainly been a privilege to be involved with the Wallabies – the staff and players have worked hard but we all know there’s a lot more hard work ahead of us with the British and Irish Lions here in a few months’ time.

“For my family, the extension until the end of next July means that they will spend more time with me in Sydney so we will hopefully find a good balance.”

Schmidt and Kiss have enjoyed a strong coaching relationship for more than a decade, including a successful stint with Ireland that included three Six Nations titles and a Rugby World Cup campaign in 2015.

Schmidt will now take the Wallabies on their end-of-season European spring tour before Kiss assumes control from the New Zealander after the 2026 Super Rugby Pacific competition.

A former Queensland State of Origin and Kangaroos winger, who played 100 games for the North Sydney Bears in the 1980s and 1990s, Kiss will be the fifth Wallabies coach in seven years.

After a brief stint coaching rugby league, he fell into a role as South Africa’s defence coach, before assisting the NSW Waratahs and then heading to Europe.

There he had success alongside Schmidt with Ireland, before becoming director of rugby at Irish province Ulster.

A move to England to coach London Irish was swiftly ended when the club hit financial issues in 2023, with Kiss swooping when Brad Thorn left his post at the Reds.

Les Kiss.
Les Kiss gives his Reds a late rev up before their clash with the Blues at Suncorp Stadium. (Dave Hunt/AAP PHOTOS)
Kiss’s resume has prompted widespread endorsement and he will inherit a solid core of Wallabies who have committed until at least the 2027 showpiece.

Before Schmidt, Eddie Jones – who had signed a five-year deal – lasted just nine months after Dave Rennie was sensationally axed 10 months before the 2023 World Cup.

New Zealander Rennie coached the side in the COVID-19 period, stepping into the role after RA and Michael Cheika parted ways following Australia’s 2019 World Cup quarter-final loss to England.