| Paolo Odogwu | |
| Birth Name: | Paolo Chukwudi Odogwu |
| Birth Date: | 18 February 1997 |
| Birth Place: | Coventry, England |
| Height: | 1.75m (05.74feet) |
| Weight: | 98kg (216lb) |
| School: | King Edward's School, Birmingham Leicester Grammar School |
| Position: | Wing, Outside Centre |
| Currentclub: | Benetton Rugby |
| Youthyears1: | 2014–2016 |
| Youthclubs1: | Leicester Tigers |
| Years1: | 2016–2019 |
| Years2: | 2017 |
| Years3: | 2017 |
| Years4: | 2019–2022 |
| Years5: | 2022–2023 |
| Years6: | 2023− |
| Clubs2: | → Sale FC (loan) |
| Clubs3: | → Rotherham (loan) |
| Clubs6: | Benetton |
| Apps1: | 29 |
| Apps2: | 24 |
| Apps3: | 1 |
| Apps4: | 42 |
| Apps5: | 12 |
| Apps6: | 5 |
| Points1: | 35 |
| Points2: | 100 |
| Points3: | 0 |
| Points4: | 80 |
| Points5: | 5 |
| Points6: | 5 |
| Clubupdate: | 9 Dec 2023 |
| Repyears1: | 2015 |
| Repyears2: | 2016–2017 |
| Repyears3: | 2023– |
| Repteam3: | Italy |
| Repcaps1: | 2 |
| Repcaps2: | 5 |
| Repcaps3: | 6 |
| Reppoints1: | 10 |
| Reppoints2: | 0 |
| Reppoints3: | 10 |
| Repupdate: | 29 September 2023 |
Paolo Odogwu (born 18 February 1997) is a professional rugby union player who plays as a winger for Benetton Rugby in the United Rugby Championship.[1]
After playing many positions at age grade level for King Edward's School Birmingham and Walsall RFC including prop, and number 8;[2] Odogwu was deemed "too fast" to be a forward and focused his talent in the centres and on the wing.
Odogwu spent his academy years at Leicester Tigers, scoring a memorable try in Marcos Ayerza's testimonial match at Welford Road, beating three players from the halfway line to score in the corner.[3] He was released by Leicester in the summer of 2016 and signed for Sale Sharks.[4]
Odogwu rose to fame after his performances for Sale in the Aviva Premiership Singha 7s tournament, scoring 8 tries in the group stage, breaking the record of 7 set by Christian Wade the previous year. This earned him the man of the round award.[5]
In September 2016 Odogwu made his senior debut for Sale in the second round of the Premiership season against Harlequins, impressing onlookers with footwork, pace and power.[6] The following month saw him score his first try for the club against former side Leicester in round 5.[7]
Odogwu left Sale at the end of the 2018–19 season after spending 3 seasons at the club and making 29 first team appearances, signing for Coventry-based club Wasps.[8]
Odogwu scored six tries for Wasps at the 2019 Premiership 7s, helping the team reach the final in what was his first outing for the club, becoming the Premiership Rugby 7's All-time top try scorer.[9] Odogwu was banned for 6 weeks in November 2019 after making contact with the head of Sale Sharks player Rohan Janse van Rensburg with his boot whilst fielding a high kick.[10]
He scored his first tries for the club in round 2 of the 2020-21 Premiership season against Gloucester; finding his way over the tryline twice in the last 2 minutes of the game to help Wasps to a try bonus point.[11] After some excellent form in late 2020 and early 2021 Odogwu earned his first man of the match award in a thrilling 44–52 victory away to Bath.[12]
Odogwu was made redundant along with every other Wasps player and coach when the team entered administration on 17 October 2022.[13]
On 27 October 2022 it was confirmed that Odogwu would spend the 2022–23 Top 14 season with Stade Français.[14] He scored a try on his league debut against Racing 92.[15]
Odogwu joined Benetton Rugby for the 2023–24 United Rugby Championship.[15]
Odogwu represented England under-18.[16] He played for England U20 in the 2016 Six Nations Under 20s Championship.[17] Odogwu was a member of their squad at the 2017 World Rugby Under 20 Championship and came off the bench as a substitute in the final as England were defeated by New Zealand to finish runners up.[18] [19]
In January 2021 Odogwu was included in the England Senior squad by coach Eddie Jones for the 2021 Six Nations.[20] [21] Ultimately he never made an appearance at senior level for England.[22]
Odogwu is eligible to represent Italy through his father.[16] [22] He was named in Italy's training squad for the 2023 Rugby World Cup.[22] On 5 July 2023, he was selected by coach Kieran Crowley to be part of an Italy squad for the 2023 Rugby World Cup warm-up matches. Odogwu made his debut against Ireland in the second match on 5 August 2023.[23] [24] He scored his first try at international level in their penultimate warm-up game against Romania.[25]
On 22 August 2023, Odogwu was named in Italy's 33-man squad for the 2023 Rugby World Cup.[24] [26] He scored a try in their opening game of the tournament against Namibia.[27]
[28] |-|style="text-align:center;"|1|19 August 2023|Stadio Riviera delle Palme, San Benedetto del Tronto, Italy||style="text-align:center;"|5–0||2023 Rugby World Cup warm-up matches|style="text-align:center;"|[25] |-|style="text-align:center;"|2|9 September 2023|Stade Geoffroy-Guichard, Saint-Étienne, France||style="text-align:center;"|50–8||2023 Rugby World Cup|style="text-align:center;"|[27] |}