NRL America: Manly open to affiliate links with possible New York Eagles franchise
Manly supremo Scott Penn is considering buying a stake in the proposed US league and believes Daly Cherry-Evans is the perfect fit to be the face of ‘NRL America’.
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Manly supremo Scott Penn is considering buying a stake in the proposed US league and believes Queensland Origin star Daly Cherry-Evans could be the NRL’s version of David Beckham in America.
An ‘NRL America’ concept is gathering steam with Penn revealing he is open to striking affiliate links for a possible New York Eagles franchise as part of a 10-team league from 2025.
As revealed by this masthead, a Rugby League America consortium has held talks with ARL Commission boss Peter V’landys and will formally present at an ARLC board meeting in Vegas on Sunday.
Channel 9 kingpin Karl Stefanovic has bought an equity stake in the mooted competition, while Hollywood megastar Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson has been approached to head-up a Hawaiian team.
Now Penn is ready to undertake due diligence on a potential feeder-club alliance with tentacles in America as his Sea Eagles prepare for Sunday’s historic clash with South Sydney in Las Vegas.
Manly majority owner and chair Scott Penn has long held an interest in buying a stake in an American rugby league team. He revealed he had spoken to Sea Eagles skipper Cherry-Evans about becoming the Lionel Messi or Beckham of any new US competition.
“From an ownership point of view it would need to stack up financially,” said Penn, who mainly resides in New York.
“From an involvement point of view and certainly using (players) ... I spoke to ‘Chez’ (Cherry-Evans) about it at the time saying that maybe in a couple of years when he was in the total back end of his career, maybe that could be interesting to be the face of a team over here.
“You are seeing it here in the MLS with Messi. Beckham did it 10 years ago with Galaxy.
“To have some faces, that is what the league is going to need here - some high profile faces to take it to the next level.”
Just turned 35, Cherry-Evans is off-contract next year, when an elite American league is tipped to start, and could feasibly entertain a post-NRL cameo in the US beyond his 36th birthday.
RLA consortium boss Steve Scanlan, who played in America for New Haven in 2005-2006, said Cherry-Evans would be the ideal template for a retired NRL legend shifting to America to help educate local players.
“Daly Cherry-Evans would be precisely the type of player we are looking for,” Scanlan said.
“He has done it all in the NRL and in retirement here, he could be a poster boy for the game in America.
“Imagine a player of Daly’s pedigree living in America and mentoring a young generation of local US kids?
“That’s what this competition is trying to achieve.
“The American lifestyle is certainly one attraction.
“Rather than finishing in the cold of England in Super League, Cherry-Evans, Latrell Mitchell or Reece Walsh could prolong their careers playing league in the bright lights of America.
“If Daly is keen, we would love to talk to him.”
Cherry-Evans, still in superb shape, hasn’t ruled out playing beyond his current Manly deal in 2026.
However, if the brains behind the mooted US Super League can convince the Sea Eagles and Queensland skipper to see out his career in the US, he would be a statement signing.
Likewise, convincing Penn to invest in a New York team would be a significant coup for the code given the impact he has had at Manly.
The business tycoon held talks with a fledgling league some years ago but it never went anywhere.
He has been burned before in that regard but could be convinced to take a serious look at a financial stake in a franchise if the new league can demonstrate its bona fides.
“There were some guys who looked at a New York team three or four years ago,” Penn said.
“They came and met me in New York. We have always said we would have a level of interest. We would obviously need to look at it from the financial point of view to see if it makes sense.
“But we were always open to talking.”
Penn knows the American market as well as anyone given he spends much of the year domiciled in New York. He insists the key to unlocking the rivers of gold in the US lies with securing broadcast coverage.
Crucially, ARL Commission chair Peter V’landys has convinced American broadcaster Fox Sports to show the double header on their main channel.
“The growth of any sport is driven by broadcast so I think the first step, I am very encouraged to see what Peter has done with Fox,” Penn said.
“If we can get more coverage of NRL here, that is (331) million people.”
The RLA consortium has already sold three licences, with a start up fee of $1.5USD million ($2.3m), and has flagged its intention to reach out to NRL clubs for investment opportunities.
“You need a balance and I would like to talk to the Broncos and Manly about having links with the league,” Scanlan said.
“We have sold three licences already.
“From here, we would like to see NRL teams forge affiliate links to give American athletes a potential pathway to the big league in Australia.”
Peter Badel travelled to Las Vegas courtesy of the NRL
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Originally published as NRL America: Manly open to affiliate links with possible New York Eagles franchise
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