BREAKING NEWS: Payne Haas has officially confirmed the next chapter of his career — and the NRL world is still processing the move

Payne Haas has officially confirmed that his Brisbane Broncos career will end after the 2026 season, with the powerhouse forward set to join the South Sydney Rabbitohs from 2027. The announcement ends months of uncertainty over his future and delivers one of the biggest recruitment stories in recent NRL seasons.

South Sydney has confirmed that Haas has signed for the 2027 and 2028 seasons, with an option for 2029. The Rabbitohs said the deal is now registered with the NRL after Brisbane waived the contract’s cooling-off period. Haas is not retiring from rugby league: he is preparing to continue his career in a new club’s colours.

For Broncos supporters, the news marks the approaching end of a remarkable chapter. For Rabbitohs fans, it is the arrival of one of the competition’s most influential forwards. And for the wider rugby league community, it is a reminder that even the most established stars can choose a new direction when the time feels right.

A major change, officially confirmed

The essential detail is now clear: Haas will finish the 2026 campaign with Brisbane before moving to South Sydney for the following season. The Rabbitohs’ announcement formalises a move that first stunned the sport in February, when the Broncos confirmed that Haas and his management had advised the club he intended to leave at the end of the year.

The timing matters. Haas is not walking away from the Broncos immediately. He is expected to complete the season with the club that gave him his NRL debut, while the team and its supporters prepare for the transition ahead. His departure will be felt most sharply when the next season begins and the familiar figure in Brisbane’s forward pack is no longer there.

For South Sydney, the signing adds a high-profile leader to a forward group that includes players Haas already knows through representative and club football. The Rabbitohs have also highlighted his connection with head coach Wayne Bennett, who handed Haas his NRL debut in 2018. The reunion gives the move a personal and professional dimension: Haas will join a coach who has been part of his story since the beginning.

Haas says family was the deciding factor

When Haas addressed his decision earlier this year, he said family was the main reason behind the change. He described the choice as difficult because Brisbane was the club he had known since his youth, but said he and his partner believed a fresh start would be best for their family. He also pointed to the support system he would have in Sydney, including relatives and people close to him.

That explanation counters speculation that the move was driven by a breakdown in his relationship with Broncos coach Michael Maguire. Haas publicly rejected those rumours, saying he had a good relationship with Maguire and enjoyed working under him. He said he was ready to give his all for Brisbane during the 2026 season and hoped to help the club pursue another premiership.

The clarification is significant because major contract decisions often invite theories about conflict or dissatisfaction. In Haas’s case, his own stated reason was family, and he pushed back against claims that a rift with the coach was behind his departure.

A defining figure in Brisbane

Haas leaves behind an unusually strong record at the Broncos. He made his NRL debut for Brisbane in 2018 and has played all of his 142 NRL games for the club, according to the Rabbitohs’ profile. He has been a central figure in the team’s forward pack and part of the side that won the 2025 premiership.

His individual honours underline his influence. The Rabbitohs list him as a five-time Dally M Prop of the Year and a six-time winner of Brisbane’s Paul Morgan Medal as the club’s player of the year. He has also represented New South Wales in State of Origin and played international football for Australia and Samoa.

Those achievements help explain why the announcement landed so strongly. Haas has not been a peripheral player whose departure might pass quietly. He has been one of the defining forwards of his era, and his presence has shaped how opponents prepare for Brisbane. His decision creates an obvious question for the Broncos: how will they replace the minutes, metres, defensive work and leadership he has supplied?

That is not a challenge Brisbane must solve overnight. Haas remains contracted to the club for the 2026 season, giving the Broncos time to plan and giving supporters another campaign to see him in the jersey. But the certainty of his exit changes the way the season will be viewed. Each appearance now carries an added sense of farewell, whether or not the club chooses to frame it that way.

What the move means for South Sydney

South Sydney is securing a forward with experience at the highest levels of the game. The club described Haas as an elite performer whose game is built on endurance, courage and leadership, and said it looks forward to welcoming him and his family for the 2027 pre-season.

The move also reunites Haas with Bennett, the coach who gave him his first NRL opportunity as a teenager. That shared history could help the transition, though the real test will come on the field, where South Sydney will need to build combinations around him and manage expectations attached to such a prominent signing.

A major signing does not guarantee immediate success. Haas will arrive with pressure to deliver, while the Rabbitohs will need the rest of the squad to make the most of his strengths. Still, adding a player with his record gives the club a clear focal point in the middle of the field and a significant boost to its ambitions.

A career move, not a retirement

The wording of the initial headline may suggest a dramatic announcement about the end of Haas’s playing days. The confirmed news is different: he is leaving one club and continuing his career at another. He is due to remain with Brisbane through 2026 and then begin a new chapter with South Sydney in 2027.

That distinction matters to supporters trying to separate fact from speculation. There has been no official announcement that Haas is retiring. Instead, the Rabbitohs have confirmed the terms of his next contract, while the Broncos have acknowledged that he intends to depart at season’s end.

The shock lies in the scale of the change: a premiership-winning Broncos cornerstone, moving to a rival club after years in Brisbane. The next season will give Haas a chance to finish his time at Red Hill on his own terms. After that, the NRL will see whether his arrival can help South Sydney build a new era around one of the game’s most accomplished forwards.