‘The possibilities are enormous’: Why Luai is set to become the NRL’s first $2m player

Jarome Luai is on track to become the first NRL player to take home more than $2 million a season, with the PNG Chiefs’ first signing in line to attract upwards of $500,000 in tax-free local third-party deals on top of his $1.2 million annual salary and current line-up of personal sponsors.

A day after Luai spoke about his reasons for signing the three-year, $3.6m deal, including the chance to leave a legacy in Papua New Guinea, Chiefs officials revealed how a family barbecue in western Sydney – and a personal plea from Prime Minister James Marape – helped land their prized signature.

Luai, 29, is one of the most gifted players in the game, and also one of the most proactive when it comes to promoting his personal brand.

He has been the face of streaming service Kayo, been backed by major sportswear company Canterbury, and even took the chance to promote his TikTok handle, Rom3y, which was scribbled on the side of his cap when thousands of fans watched his Wests Tigers’ press conference on Wednesday.

Just as Chiefs players’ salaries will be exempt from tax, any third-party agreements brokered in PNG will also be tax-free. Sources with knowledge of the situation not authorised to speak publicly predicted Luai could easily earn around $500,000 locally, on top of the $250,000 to $350,000 he collects from Australian sponsors.

Chiefs general manager Michael Chammas said the off-field possibilities awaiting Luai were endless.

“Based on the interest in the PNG Chiefs, which has been enormous, and with rugby league being the national sport in our country, and with Jarome now being our first player, you can only imagine the kind of interest he will attract from sponsors,” Chammas told this masthead.

“The possibilities for him, on and off the field, will be enormous.”

Luai’s childhood friend Nathan Cleary and Newcastle’s Kalyn Ponga are among the best-paid players in rugby league, with annual salaries of around $1.4 million. Cleary’s next deal is expected to sail closer to $1.7-$1.8 million once the new TV deal is finalised.

To put Luai’s potential $1.7 million tax-free earnings into perspective, he would need to earn around $3.2 million in Australia to have the same amount sitting in his bank account in take-home pay.

Phil Gould said on his Six Tackles With Gus podcast that when it came to local businesses wanting to sponsor players like Luai, “I think with PNG those [the third-party deals] will be endless; absolutely endless.”

Chammas first picked up the phone to Luai several weeks ago, but upped the ante when he invited the playmaker and his family to his home last Saturday. The pair live in the same suburb in the Penrith region.

Chammas cooked up koftas and kebabs, while Luai chatted with Chiefs chief executive Lorna McPherson and their children played soccer and rugby league in the backyard.

The following day they all boarded a private jet to Port Moresby, where Marape made an impassioned pitch to Luai.

“When the leader of a nation picks up the phone and says to a player, ‘My country needs you’, it’s something that goes beyond sport,” Chammas said earlier in the day at a press conference at the NRL’s Moore Park HQ on Thursday.

“Jarome was genuinely moved by that, and it’s the reason he agreed to lead us into our inaugural season. Everyone knows how passionate the PM is about this team and bringing it to life. When we spoke to him last week about where we were at with Jarome, he wanted to be involved.

“I honestly believe the way he spoke to Jarome – and it wasn’t even about footy, it was about the country, what he could do for the country, inspiring a generation and making a difference.

“You’re talking issues like the impact of domestic violence, inspiring kids to go to school, that’s what rugby league can do for people over there. It unites the country.

“I watched Jarome when the PM and others were engaging with him, you could see it was resonating with him. If he doesn’t go on that trip, Jarome doesn’t sign.

“Signing a player of Jarome’s calibre sends an unmistakable message to the competition – the PNG Chiefs are here, and we are serious.”

Rival clubs have questioned whether the tax incentives exist as they have been reported, including Gould on his podcast.

“You can only pay so many players that amount of money,” Gould said. “But the advantage is, of course, if it’s proven to be true that these are tax-free dollars, it virtually doubles the contract amount that they would normally earn in Australia.”

Chammas said of Gould’s comments: “The Australian government and PNG government announced over a year ago their plans for [NRL deals] to be tax-free. That’s the undertaking, and there are no plans to go away from that. We’re completely comfortable, and the players should be comfortable with that.”

Luai’s relationship with former Penrith teammates including Nathan Cleary, Isaah Yeo and Brian To’o is likely to be an asset to the Chiefs, especially if those multiple premiership winners become free agents on November 1.

Every NRL club, including the Chiefs, would love to know if Cleary plans to test the open market to help with their own planning, and how much they should set aside to offer the game’s best player.

Chammas was mindful not to reference Cleary or any other Penrith player under contract, and said: “We won’t go into specifics about players. We can’t talk to them until November 1. We’ve signalled our intent to be a team that’s competitive, and a team that will win. We’ll make sure we do that.”

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