St George Illawarra Dragons fullback Cody Ramsey has been given permission to seek a move to Super League in 2026 after a remarkable and unique intervention from the Home Office in the UK.
Ramsey has not played in the NRL since 2022, having spent two years on the sidelines due to ulcerative colitis. However, he has made his playing comeback in the New South Wales Cup for the Dragons this year and been one of the competition’s standout performers.
That has led to St George offering him a train and trial deal for the start of 2026, but Ramsey is keen to secure a permanent arrangement in either Australia or England instead. Several Super League clubs have been weighing up the prospect of a move.
However, it had been revealed that Ramsey would struggle to secure a Governing Body Endorsement (GBE) to get a visa to make the switch to Super League due to the amount of time he has spent out of the sport at the highest level. That led to NRL supremo Peter V’landys pleading Ramsey’s case at a high level.
And now, Love Rugby League has been told that officials from the Rugby Football League and the NRL have worked extensively together to convince the Home Office that Ramsey’s unique circumstances should allow him to be able to secure a GBE and enter Super League in 2026 if a deal can be agreed with a club.
The RFL’s operations team have worked behind the scenes for a number of weeks on convincing the Home Office to make the exemption, which is incredibly rare and underlines the rare set of circumstances that have led to Ramsey being in limbo for 2026.
But now, the door on a move to Super League has firmly been pushed open by the relevant authorities after the two governing bodies worked together to secure Ramsey a potential path to England.