Dave Rennie was named as replacement for Scott Robertson as coach of the All Blacks on Wednesday and charged with taking New Zealand to a fourth World Cup triumph in Australia next year.
He returns to Aotearoa!
ā All Blacks (@AllBlacks) March 3, 2026
Introducing your new All Blacks Head Coach, Dave Rennie šš¼š³šæ pic.twitter.com/KYCZ7MCcBX
The 62-year-old former Wallabies coach beat out Jamie Joseph for one of the biggest jobs in world rugby after an extensive recruitment process that started when Robertson made the surprise decision to step down halfway through his contract in mid-January.
Rennie, the first All Blacks coach with Pacific islander heritage, was handed a contract through to the end of next year's World Cup but will honour his commitment to Japan's Kobe Steelers before preparing New Zealand for the July tests.
"I'm extremely proud and honoured," Rennie told a news conference in Auckland.
"I'm well aware of the expectations and responsibility of the role I'm going to be in, but I'm really excited by it."
Robertson stepped down in the wake of a critical review of his stewardship of the team last season, when the All Blacks won 10 of 13 tests but were humbled at home by the Springboks and also lost to Argentina and England.
Rennie said he was confident that New Zealand could win a fourth World Cup next year.
"It'll take a hell of a lot of work," he said. "By the time we start, we'll have about 15 months to the World Cup ...
"We need to get the athletes in the best possible position to execute and play well. It's a sprint from here."
Nau mai, haere mai. Welcome Coach š¤ pic.twitter.com/LH9ilcAINc
ā All Blacks (@AllBlacks) March 3, 2026
TWO SUPER RUGBY TITLES
New Zealand Rugby chairman David Kirk said Rennie's experience of coaching in several tier one rugby-playing nations had been an important factor in his appointment.
Rennie, who has Cook Islands heritage through his mother, made his name as the coach of the New Zealand under-20 team which won three junior world titles between 2008 and 2010.
He enjoyed more success in Super Rugby as coach of the Chiefs side which clinched back-to-back titles in 2012 and 2013 before moving to Scotland with the Glasgow Warriors.
He was appointed Australia coach in late 2019 and oversaw 34 tests over three seasons ā winning 13, drawing four and losing 18 ā before being summarily sacked in early 2023 to make way for the ill-fated return of Eddie Jones.
The New Zealander's winning record was the lowest of any Wallabies coach who had overseen at least 30 tests but he did lead them to wins over the All Blacks, Springboks, and France during his reign.
Rennie said team culture would be one of his main focuses at the All Blacks and he also had an idea of some changes he wanted to make to the way the team played.
"(I'm) probably not going to go into massive detail around what that is or the changes we want to make because I don't want to throw anyone in the previous regime under the bus," he added.
"I've watched a lot of footy already. I've got some firm ideas around the shifts we can make that'll make us better."