SBW set for $1m per game payout
Sonny Bill Williams will end up pocketing $1 million a game for his brief stint in Toronto if the embattled club returns to the Super League next year.
Williams joined the Wolfpack this year on a mammoth $10 million, two-year deal.
However, the Canadian side withdrew from the competition midway through its first season in the top tier, citing the financial impact of the coronavirus pandemic.
Williams is one of the players who remains out of pocket, having been paid only a fraction of the money he is owed.
However, he could yet recoup his 2020 contract entitlements in full after the club’s prospective new owners came to an agreement with the union that represents rugby league players and staff in the
UK, GMB.
All players will receive their entitlements for this year if the Wolfpack are accepted back into the Super League in 2021.
Should that eventuate, Williams is expected to be paid the full $5 million he is owed for the season. Given he only played five games for the club, that would equate to about $1 million for each appearance.
Those payments dwarf the pro-rata $400,000 annual salary that he accepted to be part of the Roosters’ bid for a third straight premiership. The cross-code star returned to the NRL for the challenge of proving he can still play at the highest level at the age of 35, rather than financial considerations.
However, he will still receive a huge payday if he receives the outstanding payments owed to him by Toronto.