FORMER Warrington Wolves centre Luther Burrell claims going public to reveal his experience of racism in rugby union ended his career in the 15-a-side code.

Burrell played for Leeds, Sale, Northampton and England before a stint in Rugby League with the Wolves between July 2019 and September 2020, after which he returned to union with Newcastle.

He had played the 13-a-side game when growing up in Huddersfield and made eight appearances for Warrington.

In an interview with the Mail on Sunday in June 2022, Burrell described racism as being “rife” in rugby union.

He revealed WhatsApp messages and referenced training-ground “jokes” he had been subject to while at Newcastle.

Burrell, who left Newcastle at the end of the 2021-22 season and is now 37, told the BBC: “I have absolutely had to retire because of what went on.

“I wanted to carry on playing, of course I did. I pursued that. It fell through when word came out that there were investigations going on.

“That was difficult – I had to just accept the fate and accept that this whole process is a lot bigger than me.”

An investigation by the Rugby Football Union found that “on the balance of probability”, Burrell’s claims were likely true, but it could not definitively prove that most of the abuse happened at Newcastle.

Burrell said much of the racism he experienced was “dressed up as banter” and claimed there were “undertones of discrimination” throughout English rugby union.