Kristian John RadlinskiMBE (born 9 April 1976) is an English former professional rugby league footballer who played mainly as a fullback. He is currently CEO of Wigan Warriors whom he played his entire professional career for, making over 300 appearances between 1993 and 2006, and also represented England and Great Britain at international level.
Background
Radlinski was born in Wigan, Greater Manchester, England. His family originated in Poland and have lived in Wigan since World War II.
Playing career
Club career
Radlinski signed for his hometown club in 1993, aged 17, and went on to play his entire professional career for them after having played for Wigan St Judes and Wigan St Patricks at amateur level. He debuted for the first team as a substitute in October 1993 against Castleford.[5]
He made his first start during the following year, scoring a try in a 30–6 win against Featherstone Rovers in November 1994. He spent most of the 1994–95 season playing on the wing, deputising for Jason Robinson or Martin Offiah whenever they were injured.[6] In May 1995, at age 19, he scored a hat-trick in the 1995 Premiership final against Leeds, becoming the first player to do so in a Premiership final, and was also the youngest ever winner of the Harry Sunderland Trophy for man-of-the-match in Wigan's victory.[7]
He was given a testimonial year in 2005 for his loyal service to Wigan Warriors. Radlinski made only 15 appearances for the team during a season that was interrupted by multiple injuries.[10][11] His testimonial match was played at the JJB Stadium on 2 February 2006 against the Huddersfield Giants.[12] Wigan won this match 38–22.[13]
Radlinski announced his retirement from the sport prematurely on 2 March 2006 due to persistent injuries.[14] He had made over 300 appearances for Wigan, scoring 183 tries.[15] This brought down the curtain on a successful career during which the player was a loyal servant to his club.
In June 2006 Radlinski came out of retirement and returned to Wigan for the remainder of 2006's Super League XI, playing for "no fee" to aid the team during their personnel struggles that year.[16] He helped the club avoid relegation, making six appearances before retiring a second time in August 2006.[17]
Internationally he was capped 20 times by Great Britain, and won 10 England caps. The pinnacle of his international career, in which he was a main stay in the international setup, saw him captain the team against New Zealand 'A'. He scored three tries in this match.
Coaching and management
Durin the 2009 season, Radlinski returned to Wigan, taking up a scholarship coaching role. He was given a place on the England coaching staff for the 2009 Four Nations tournament. On 1 December 2009, Radlinski was appointed Rugby General Manager at Wigan, working alongside new head coach Michael Maguire.[18]
In 2014, Radlinski was appointed as an Executive Director of Wigan Warriors before being promoted to CEO on New Years Day 2023.[19] Radlinski was a key figure in securing Wigan's place at the 2025 Rugby League Las Vegas event.[20][21]
Other work
Radlinski published his autobiography entitled Simply Rad in 2009.[22]