Louis Rees-Zammit starts new life in America as entire family to move with him

Louis Rees-Zammit is jetting off to officially start his new life in the United States today and is set to be joined out there by his entire family.

The former Wales wing is heading back to Kansas City after signing a three-year deal with the Chiefs and will now turn his attention towards preparing for a hectic summer. The NFL pre-season doesn't begin until August, but before then he will be put through his paces in training camps before being thrown into practices with some of the game's biggest stars.

It is a major step for the 23-year-old after a whirlwind few months, having quit rugby to join the NFL's International Player Pathway (IPP) Programme in January. During 10 weeks of intense training in Florida, he emerged as a standout talent with scouts left impressed with his speed, footwork and understanding of the game during his trial day last month.

SIGN UP: Get the new exclusive Inside Welsh rugby newsletter for full insight into what's really going on around all the big issues. This special offer will get you full access for the entire year for just £10 instead of £40.

READ MORE: NFL's best coach goes 'all in' on Louis Rees-Zammit as special phone calls emerge

The reigning Super Bowl champions won the race for his signature after interest from more than 12 franchises and Rees-Zammit is set to link back up with his new team shortly as he jets back to Missouri. He has already been given a warm welcome from superstars Travis Kelce and Patrick Mahomes, with his new teammates texting him after his deal was announced.

But while the Welshman will be over 4,000 miles from home, he won't need to worry about homesickness with his entire family set to follow him out to the States. Appearing on The Rugby Pod with Jim Hamilton and Dan Biggar, Rees-Zammit explained that his brother Taylor will fly out to join him this summer to launch their new energy drinks business in the US, with his parents planning to follow suit later in the year.

"It's going to be a busy few months for me," he said. "I'm so excited, I fly Wednesday and get straight into it. I'm excited to rip right into it and get to work.

"My brother is going to move over in July. We've got our energy drink Savitar, me and my brother set it up. It's been two and a half years in the making and it just got released a couple of months ago. He's going to move over and we're going to get it out in America and see how it goes.

"I know what I've got to focus on but at the same time, my brother is dealing with Savitar and all the other directors within the company," he added. "My brother is moving over in July and my family will hopefully move over for the season. I know what I've got to do, I've got to make the 53-man squad and then we can go from there."

While Rees-Zammit is set for an even busier few months, he won't be playing much actual football until next month. James Cook, the head of the IPP programme, recently outlined the Welshman's itinerary for the summer and explained that he will be engaged in 'Phase 1' activities, namely running and strength and conditioning, before a 'rookie mini-camp' in May.

After being incorporated with the vets, the former rugby star will then look to stand out in an intense three-week training camp, before hopefully being given some game-time during exhibition fixtures in pre-season. If he does enough, then he could land a place on 53-man active roster for the new season, but may also end up in the 16-man practice squad.