3 days ago
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Brisbane Broncos poster boy Reece Walsh will surprisingly not feature in the club’s 2026 official calendar.
It comes after his management team imposed a ban on him being photographed for the annual piece of merchandise.
Walsh’s stock has risen astronomically in the past four months, with the toilet water-drinking 23-year-old leading his side to Grand Final Glory last month.
He later starred for the Kangaroos as Australia sealed a 3-0 series victory against England in the Rugby League Ashes.
The front cover of the NRL-licensed calendar features stars including Ben Hunt, Kotoni Staggs, Adam Reynolds and Patrick Carrigan. But there was no sign of Walsh.
According to News Corp, members of the Rugby League Players’ Association had instructed the NRL that the footy star should not be used in the calendar.
Footy star Reece Walsh has been omitted from the Broncos official 2026 calendar due to an intellectual property dispute
His management put a ban on him appearing in the calendar due to a dispute over the royalties generated from the merchandise
Walsh had taken centre stage on the 2025 Brisbane Broncos official calendar (pictured)
The bizarre twist of events comes down to a dispute over the royalties that the league and the Broncos would receive from the sales of the merchandise.
It is understood that Walsh’s team were keen to stop his involvement upon realising that their intellectual property would be used as part of NRL merchandise.
It is understood that the calendar could cost around $20, with some fans set to be disappointed upon realising the star man has been omitted.
Walsh had occupied a prime position on the official 2025 calendar, behind skipper Adam Reynolds.
News Corp adds that the Broncos had been happy for Walsh to feature on the calendar.
As yet, it is not clear whether the footy player himself was aware of the matter.
Walsh, who has 665,000 followers on Instagram, was recently backed by publicist Max Markson to earn over $40million during his NRL career and sponsorships.
‘He will get additional long-term deals,’ Markson told News Corp.
Players including Adam Reynolds, Ben Hunt and Payne Haas have all been included in the calendar
Walsh's stock has risen dramatically in recent months after the footy star guided his side to the NRL Grand Final
‘If he’s getting a million dollars a year now, then he will double it up and double it up.
'He will literally get millions and millions of dollars.’
Walsh has received attention from fans on social media this year for his antics away from the footy field, too.
The fullback infuriated his club earlier in the season after he posted a video of himself punching one of his bet mates in the face while wearing a boxing glove.
He would later publish a bizarre video of himself drinking from his newly installed toilet, stating that drinking toilet water was good for recovery. The Broncos were later forced to publish a statement telling people not to drink toilet water, while Walsh leaned into the joke, drinking beer from a mini porcelain toilet alongside his coach Michael Maguire after the NRL Grand Final.
