Touchdowns, goals and home runs are terms that are familiar with American sports fans. Sports that originated from the United States have gone global, and they are played at different levels and watched around the world today. In recent years, English sports such as football or, ‘soccer’ if you’re American, are gradually increasing in popularity in America. A regionalised sport in England such as Rugby League, is slowly, but surely becoming more recognisable in countries around the world.
It’s not every day that you come across a Rugby League fan from America. Cody Kuxmann is from the state of Wisconsin. Sporting wise, this state is most notably the home of NFL side, the Green Bay Packers. Sport was always in his DNA, and it’s no surprise that he was involved from an early age.
“Sport has always been a part of my life growing up,” he said. “I started 'coaching' soccer with my Dad when I was around three or four. I've grown up in a sporting atmosphere. I played soccer, flag football (non-contact American football) and rugby union as I grew up. I always had a passion for it, whether it be watching it on TV or going out to the golf course. Literally, if it's some form of sport chances are I have either played or followed it at some point.”
It was during high school where Cody discovered rugby. His involvement in the two codes has blossomed since his teenage years. “Rugby union, I came across in high school. I played a video game one time and was like I really like this and lone behold the next day I go to my high school and they have a poster up for a club rugby team and I just started playing.
“Rugby League, on the other hand, I was talking to a guy one time who had come to watch a union game and just got talking about how the summers get fairly dull and he said he refereed Rugby League and why not give that a go? In my mind it was a natural progression, fill my off-season with Rugby League, get some money and get fitter.”
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| Cody whilst refereeing rugby |
Cody is currently in his final year of university. He studies International Business at Richmond University, a small American university in London. His decision to come to study in England was to keep the rugby bug that he caught whilst he was a teenager.
He referees both codes and started at 16 when playing rugby union. He stopped playing due to a bad neck injury. His first experience of Rugby League came through refereeing the game in London. “My first rugby league encounter in England would be the first game I refereed. It was Elmbridge U14 vs Medway, then that afternoon I went to do the London Open-Age 9s. I was lost without a shadow of a doubt.”
“I found that it's amazing how sports are so regionalised within England. I wrote my dissertation recently on sporting league rivalries and focused on the Union/League Split for a bit of it, and honestly it's very interesting to see how polarised certain areas are.”
For a referee of both codes, there’s always plenty of games to officiate for Cody. That's something that he likes about being based in London.“The thing that I really enjoy about London rugby is that in the winter it's union and summer it's League. However, having recently made the RFL panel, it's become more and more League focused as they start much earlier. Last year, with both codes I put in about 100 games, ranging from u11s to an amateur international.”
When comparing Rugby League and American football, the two games overlap in some of the skills that players require. For someone like Cody, from the United States, to embark on playing and refereeing a minority sport is something that’s unique.
He believes that the potential is there for League to spread more in his home nation. “I think that Rugby League has the potential to become a huge sport in America. This is for a few reasons: firstly, Rugby League and American football are very similar, except Rugby League is continuous action. Secondly, as sport becomes more expensive schools will look to cut back.
"Imagine that we can now take 55 kids, who need a lot of equipment to play, and now they need none of the expensive padding. Lastly, it's very easy to understand. My mom has been to many of my rugby union games and didn't really understand it. However, she went to one League game, Canada v Jamaica, and she loved it.”
University is coming to its closing stages for Cody. Once he graduates, he plans to go back to Wisconsin for a few years but wants to come back to England to study a master’s degree in Sports Business.
He won’t be calling time off on his refereeing career any time soon. He will continue to officiate games back home. Without people like Cody, Rugby League fixtures may not go ahead in America. His admirable commitment to refereeing and his love for the game is a shining light that Rugby League needs to take off in new countries.
Who knows, maybe one day, America will be swapping helmets for gum shields and touchdowns for tries?
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