Winning the Super Bowl is regarded as one of sport’s hardest achievements but being born in New Zealand and achieving that feat is much rarer.
That’s what Auckland-born George Holani has accomplished as a member of the Seattle Seahawks, who beat the New England Patriots 29-13 in Santa Clara on Monday to secure Super Bowl LX, becoming the second New Zealand-born player, after Riki Ellison, to lift the Vince Lombardi Trophy.
Holani spent his formative years in Onehunga with his Tongan parents Saia and Atelaite, before moving to the United States at 3 years old. The third eldest of 10 siblings, he was raised in a tightly knit Polynesian family that shaped the humility and resilience he still carries.
The 26-year-old has not been back to New Zealand since leaving but is determined to visit during the NFL offseason. His grandmother and eldest brother still live there, while one of his older sisters is based in Australia.
Growing up in the United States, Holani began playing American football at age 8 before taking up rugby two years later. He idolised All Blacks legend Jonah Lomu, and later discovered the connection was more than admiration, learning his father Saia and Lomu were cousins, growing up in the same village of Holopeka in Tonga.
“My dad knows more than me, but he said that’s family somewhere, you know how everyone’s related,” Holani told the Herald less than 48 hours after winning the Super Bowl.
“Jonah Lomu is a beast. I’ve seen his highlights, I always watch it. That’s a God-gifted talent right there for sure.”
Saia Holani himself played rugby in New Zealand and Australia and once had an opportunity to move to England. But his mother was firm.
“She said he’s not playing on Sundays,” Holani said. “She took his boots away.”
While professional rugby didn’t eventuate for Saia, he did spend several years coaching the Los Angeles Rugby Club for over a decade.
As George Holani arrived at the stadium for the biggest game of his life, he honoured his heritage by wearing a special outfit that many of his family helped out with.
He wore a traditional ta’ovala with a full Tongan puletaha, paired with a white Seahawks shirt featuring the flags of the United States, Tonga and New Zealand.
“I didn’t know what I was going to wear leading up to that point,” Holani said.
“My mum just did the whole deal with my aunties. They got together and I just showed up and was ready to wear whatever. It was pretty cool to go represent my culture and everyone.”
#Seahawks RB George Holani with his parents Atelaite and Sosaia, as well as agents @henryorgann and @Agent_Big_Al, dressed in a Tongan Ta’ovala on a sacred Ngatu mat. pic.twitter.com/lvqVs1nTyU
— Mike Garafolo (@MikeGarafolo) February 8, 2026
The Seahawks dominated the game from start to finish, largely down to their defence setting the tone from the onset. Across the campaign they took on the nickname the ”Dark Side”, an identity that was formed on a bus ride to pay homage to the gloomy, rainy winter of the American football season in Seattle and the wider the US Pacific Northwest.
They suffocated the Patriots’ offence, sacking quarterback Drake Maye six times and forcing three takeaways, two of which were converted into touchdowns, one of those coming late in the fourth quarter – and it was at that moment Holani knew they were going to be crowned champions.
After the final whistle, the scale of what he had achieved began to sink in.
“It’s been pretty crazy,” Holani said. “I feel like I can barely sleep – just so excited. I’ve received a lot of messages.
“It’s definitely a dream come true. I’ve been playing this sport since I was 8 years old, so all that hard work, it all paid off.”
Holani, Seattle’s back-up running back, was involved in some key plays, which included six rushing yards from two carries and a seven-yard reception.
The catch and one of the runs came late in the second quarter in a pivotal stretch that helped the Seahawks control possession before kicking a field goal to take a 9-0 halftime lead.
With the game unfolding in Seattle’s favour, Holani understood the importance of small moments contributing to the overall chess match that was unfolding.
“Our coach [Mike Macdonald] had been talking about it the whole week,” Holani said. “The check-downs are really important – emphasising getting out when nobody’s blitzing, getting out with urgency and being available.”
His opportunities were limited in part due to the dominant performance of starter Kenneth Walker III, who finished with 135 rushing yards and 26 receiving yards to claim Super Bowl MVP honours.
But Holani remained integral to the running back room’s cohesion.
“Every play we ask each other what we’ve seen and if it could be done better,” Holani said. “We celebrate the little victories.
“If he goes out there and makes an explosive play, I want to be the first on the sideline to celebrate it. Those are big plays. To have great drives and score points, you need those little explosive moments.”
Family is an integral part in Holani’s life and many family members were in the stands at Levi’s Stadium to watch Holani in action, while others were at nearby tailgate parties, which are popular events in football where fans meet in stadium carparks to socialise and watch the game.
When the Holanis first moved to the United States, they settled in Southern California and Saia worked construction, while Atelaite was a caretaker for families in Pacific Palisades.
During his final years at St John Bosco High School, Holani slept on his assistant coach’s couch while his parents worked long hours to support the family. He thrived regardless, earning a scholarship to Boise State University.
After multiple productive seasons with the Broncos, he went undrafted but was quickly signed by Seattle as a free agent.
There were setbacks – including being cut and added to the practice squad – but after earning promotion to the active roster, he has not looked back.
Those humble beginnings remain central to his identity.
“I would say just the humility in it – staying humble, staying hungry, remembering my upbringing and being grateful for what I have now,” Holani said.
“I didn’t have much growing up but I had everything I needed, but it definitely helped me become more adaptable and persevere.”
Even a hamstring injury that sidelined him for several weeks this season did little to alter his approach.
“I always stay ready to go no matter what,” Holani said. “You attack every week like it’s the same week.
“Same preparation, same time in the film room and weight room. I’m always running, staying in tip-top shape. I’m lifting four times a week.
“There are days I could go home early, but I choose to stay around, sit in meetings after practice, make sure I’ve got clarity on the game plan so I’m dialled in.”
An estimated crowd of nearly one million Seahawks fans packed downtown Seattle for Thursday’s Super Bowl parade.
The season is now over, and Holani enters the offseason as an exclusive-rights free agent – meaning Seattle hold negotiating rights if they tender him a contract.
For now, though, football can wait.
“You don’t want to be always football, football, football,” Holani said. ”There’s other things in my life – my wife, my family, friends – that I need to bring balance to.
“I’ll stay in shape, keep working out, but also just get my mind away from it for a bit.”
And if he finally makes it back to New Zealand?
“I might bring some meat pies back home,” Holani said, smiling. “My sister usually sends chocolates and different kinds of sweets – and the pies, for sure.”
Ben Francis is an Auckland-based reporter for the New Zealand Herald who covers breaking sports news.