Sonny Bill Williams: The All Black Who Found Peace in Islam
Sonny Bill Williams
24 years old, from New Zealand
Previous Religion: Christianity
My Life Before Islam
Sonny Bill Williams was born on 3 August 1985 in Auckland, New Zealand, the son of a Samoan father and a Pākehā mother, and grew up in a working-class family in the suburb of Mount Albert. He was raised as a Christian. A gifted athlete, he became one of the most exciting players in rugby league, and by his early twenties he had signed a celebrated contract with the Canterbury Bulldogs in Australia. Yet success brought restlessness. He has spoken with honesty of chasing girls and drinking, of a "wild" period that left him empty rather than fulfilled, and of feeling that something essential was missing from a life that looked spectacular from the outside.
The Moment of Guidance
It was in Australia, while playing league for the Bulldogs, that Williams first learned about Islam. He was struck by the contentment and good character of the Muslim men he met and befriended, among them his manager Khoder Nasser, who became a close companion. "I grew up as a Christian, and I always felt a little bit uncomfortable, not about the message but the environment," he later explained. In France, where he moved in 2008 to play rugby union for Toulon, his interest deepened. He was moved by the hospitality and peace of a local Tunisian family, and he has said it was their simple example that confirmed for him "the beauty of Islam."
Reflections
In 2009, while playing for Toulon, Sonny Bill Williams made his shahada and embraced Islam. "It took a few years for the process," he said, "but I found Allah, I found Islam, and it really allowed me to turn the wildness in myself into positivity." He has called becoming a Muslim one of the best things ever to happen to him, and said that Islam gave him a contentment he had searched for throughout his youth. "I made a lot of mistakes in my life," he said, "but becoming a Muslim was one of the best things to ever happen to me, so I'm forever grateful."
Williams went on to become the first Muslim to play for the All Blacks, New Zealand's national rugby team, and one of the most recognizable Muslim athletes in the world. He has spoken extensively about his faith, performed the minor pilgrimage of Umrah in 2018, and, after the Christchurch mosque attacks of 2019, voiced his grief for the victims and comforted the bereaved. "I am a Kiwi, a New Zealander, Samoan," he said, "but a human being first. That is what Islam offers, it is there for all of mankind." His journey, from a restless young star to a serene and devoted believer, shows how faith can heal and transform a celebrated life.