Jack Willis has revealed that he was forced to leave England, but it was his personal decision to stay in France despite the impact that it had on his international career.
Willis made an appearance on the For the Love of Rugby podcast with his former England teammates Ben Youngs and Dan Cole.
Why Jack Willis isn’t playing for England?
Willis currently plays for Toulouse and has been one of their standout performers in recent years. At 24, he has won three back-to-back Top 14 titles and a Champions Cup. In 2025, he was named the Top 14 player of the year.
England currently have a policy where they don’t select players outside of the Prem.
Willis has 14 caps for England and was a member of the squad at the 2023 Rugby World Cup.
When London Wasps folded, Jack and his brother Tom were left with “no feasible options in the UK”. Jack went to Toulouse, and Tom went to Bordeaux at the time.
Willis revealed in the podcast that it was his choice to remain in France, and when he signed a new contract with Toulouse, he was sacrificing his international career.
How Willis has become one of the best in the World
Willis revealed that he was left on a really difficult decision when Wasps entered administration in 2022. He admitted that this didn’t prepare him to show his best in an England shirt in 2023 when his eligibility was still open.
Since joining Toulouse, the flanker has been exposed to some of the highest-quality competition in World Rugby. From that young age, he has been playing in big matches in Top 14 playoffs and later stages of the Champions Cup. This has helped him be exposed and stressed at the top level.
Not only is he playing against top-level opposition, but he also has some of the best players in the world as teammates. In the podcast, Willis made reference to the amount of running they do in training and how good his teammates are. Playing with the likes of Dupont, Ramos and Meafou helps young players improve at an incredibly fast rate.
