Peter V’landys considers stepping down from one of his two major sporting roles

As the boss of NSW Racing and chairman of the Australian Rugby League Commission Peter V’landys has juggled two of sport’s most difficult jobs, but he is now contemplating stepping back from one of those roles.

Australia’s most powerful sporting administrator, Peter V’landys, is weighing up his future in his dual roles as the boss of NSW racing and the NRL.

V’landys is seriously contemplating stepping down from one of the roles this year – most likely racing - to focus on his commitment to rugby league, the new TV deal and expansion.

V’landys, the dominant figure in the Australian racing industry, has held the title as chief executive of Racing NSW since 2004 and has overseen its dramatic transformation over the past two decades.

He is also the chairman of the Australian Rugby League Commission, a position he was appointed to in 2019, and has held the dual roles for the past six years.

The two jobs have become increasingly demanding.

Peter V’landys is weighing up his future as both chief executive of Racing NSW and chairman of the Australian Rugby League Commission. Picture: Justin Lloyd.

The Daily Telegraph’s Sports Editor at Large, Phil Rothfield, made the bombshell revelation on his brand-new podcast “Off the Record”, which he co-hosts with leading sports journalist Andrew Webster from The Australian.

“Peter V’landys, the most dynamic official in Australian sport, I am told will make a decision this year on his administrative future,” Rothfield revealed on Off the Record.

“I think he’s now - and I’ve made a lot of phone calls - on the verge of deciding between racing and rugby league. At his age with a young family, I think the jobs have become too stressful for him to manage and have some sort of decent life with it.

“Racing has become a real snake pit - the $5 billion sale of Rosehill, the Mark Latham pile-on and the parliamentary inquiry where he said some disgusting things about Peter V’landys ... he’s not talking to Gai Waterhouse and the Chris Waller relationship has been a little bit strained. I’m not sure that he will stay in racing.

“The problem is, in racing, he is on more than $1 million as CEO. In rugby league, as chairman of the independent commission, I understand he’s on $150-200,000.

Listen to the new “Off the Record” podcast with Phil Rothfield and Andrew Webster.

“So the constitution would need to be changed if rugby league was to put Peter V’landys on full-time in a position that would allow Andrew Abdo to stay on as chief executive. But Peter would then become an executive chairman on a salary of $1 million-plus.”

V’landys has revolutionised the racing industry with his initiatives, and if he decides to step away, it will send a shockwave through the sport. He is the brains behind The Everest, the richest race on turf in the world, as well as The Golden Eagle, which carries the second biggest purse in Australia.

If he was to choose in rugby league over racing it would come at the right time in the competition’s history ahead of its looming multi-billion dollar TV rights.

#Listen to the podcast: Off the Record with Buzz and Webby launches across all podcast platforms and Code Sports today

Originally published as Peter V’landys considers stepping down from one of his two major sporting roles