Wallabies fly-half Quade Cooper has called on the Australian Rugby Union to change its selection criteria for the Rio Olympics in 2016 Sevens, which could see some of the country's top players miss out.

The ARU has insisted that only players who commit to a full season with the nation's Sevens squad will be considered for the Games in Brazil.

He told The Australian: "The Olympic Games is something which goes beyond a lot of the rules and guidelines which you see in place across the different professional sporting codes and competitions.

"It is a real privilege rugby has been afforded and I think it is wrong to have any professional code using that privilege to force athletes into playing in one particular place."

The New Zealand Rugby Union has said that it will consider players not exclusively playing Sevens, which could include recent rugby league converts Sonny Bill Williams and Benji Marshall.