After that, his parents found out what he had been doing and, by his third season, they began to support his junior football endeavours,[7][3][2] during which time he won two league best and fairest awards and earned selection to the local representative side, the Western Jets, in the TAC Cup.

[12] In 2006, Houli suffered repeated stress fractures in his back, but was able to play through, including while serving as Vic Metro vice-captain at the 2006 AFL Under 18 Championships.

[24] Houli turned in a series of strong performances in the 2008 pre-season NAB Cup tournament, including with 17 disposals in the first half of a match against West Coast that saw AFL Media label him among his side's best players.

[27][28][29] Those efforts saw him hold his place into the season-proper, where he played in a dual role as midfielder and half-back and recorded 26 disposals in a win over the Kangaroos that earned him the league's first Rising Star nomination of the year.

[33] Houli missed round 12's match against West Coast with a groin injury, which after several weeks of rehabilitation and little progress, was identified as the beginning of osteitis pubis.

[24] Houli recovered from his 2009 injury to complete a full pre-season training program ahead of the 2010 season, but he started the year outside the club's AFL 22.

[24][50][51] Despite strong and consistently high output performances, Houli was restricted to VFL football for the longest period of his career with 13 weeks away, before finally earning an AFL recall in round 17.

[24][55] Houli featured in the club's VFL elimination final that September, a match which fell during the fasting daylight hours of Ramadan for the first time of his professional career.

[58] Houli came out of contract at the end of the 2010 season bearing significant frustration towards Essendon after failing to gain regular senior selection under departing coach Matthew Knights.

[59] Despite consulting with the newly appointed Essendon coach James Hird in October, Houli formalised his rejection of a contract extension by requesting a trade to Richmond.

[78] Houli signed a new two-year contract extension with the club in late June, to which point he averaged 22 disposals per game over 12 consecutive matches that year.

Prior to the 2013 season, Houli was labelled "elite" by the AFL's statistical partner Champion Data who placed him in the very top category of general defenders in the league.

[104][24] After a strong pre-season showing, Houli started the 2015 season in good form with a 32 disposals, 11 intercepts and nine rebound-50s in a round 3 performance that earned him eight coaches votes as second best on ground in that win over the Brisbane Lions.

[108][109] Houli responded with a fantastic performance in round 6, recording game-highs of nine marks and 33 disposals along with one goal to earn six coaches votes as Richmond's best player in the loss to Geelong.

[118][119][120][24] He led the side with 34 disposals in a round 6 loss to Port Adelaide, but his uneven impacts saw AFL Media label his output "subdued" over the opening seven weeks of the season.

[138][139] He was named among the club's best players the following week in a match against Carlton but was reported for striking opponent Jed Lamb in the head with an off-ball, blind round arm swing in the first quarter of that win.

[140] Houli successful argued the penalty from four weeks down to two at the AFL Tribunal with a defence that featured character statements from witnesses including broadcaster Waleed Aly and Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull.

[143][144][145][146] Houli returned to football with 25 disposals and nine score involvements in round 19's win over Gold Coast and played in each of the club's final five home and away season matches.

[167][168] Houli spent a further two weeks on the sidelines before making a return to football in limited game time in one VFL match in early August.

[173][174] After helping Richmond to the minor premiership as the ladder-leading side at the end of the home-and-away season, Houli contributed 24 disposals and four tackles in a qualifying final win over Hawthorn.

[191][192] At the end of the home and away season, Houli was named in the All-Australian team for the first time in his career and recorded a career-best 11 Brownlow Medal votes.

[198][199] Houli became a two-time premiership player the following week after Richmond defeated Greater Western Sydney by 89 points in the 2019 AFL Grand Final.

[203][204] After a season in which he played 22 matches, became a two-time premiership player and earned an All-Australian honour, Houli also placed seventh in the club's best and fairest count.

[213][214] He was able to rest the injury over an extraordinary 11-week break, after the AFL Commission that weekend suspended the season due to state border crossing restrictions enforced as a result of the rapid progression of the coronavirus pandemic into Australia.

[215][216][217] Despite some continuing calf troubles during the break, Houli made his return when the league did, featuring in round 2's draw with Collingwood when it was finally played in the second week of June.

[230][231][232][233] He was among his side's best players one week later, earning two coaches votes in a win over West Coast for a performance that included 23 disposals, five intercepts and a game-high 526 metres-gained.

[249] In round 7, he was rated fourth-best on ground, earning four coaches award votes for a performance that included 10 marks, six inside-50s and a team-high 31 disposals in Richmond's win over the Western Bulldogs.

[253] Post-game scans revealed a mild syndesmosis injury that would require surgery to repair and that placed Houli in doubt to play again that season.

[273] Houli sought permission from local religious leaders to break his Ramadan fast on AFL match days and to limit his training load during the holy month.

[2][274] Houli observes the fasting requirements associated with Ramadan; during his career, he has made various adjustments, including altering training sessions to accommodate this.