Welcome to Country: Storm to review and overhaul its cultural diversity plan for 2025
As some rival NRL clubs applauded reports the Storm would be scaling back its Welcome to Country ceremonies, the Melbourne-based club moved to clarify its decision to review its cultural diversity plan.
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A bold Melbourne Storm has admitted the club will pull back Acknowledgement to Country ceremonies this coming season.
And Storm management will undertake a cultural planning review for 2025 to determine how often Welcome to Country, where an elder performs the on-field custom, will be used.
Some rival NRL clubs immediately applauded Melbourne’s stance.
This masthead has been told Melbourne may instead acknowledge the international cultures and backgrounds of its players next season.
Melbourne only engaged in three Welcome of Country formalities this year and will discuss using the same amount next season, which would include Anzac Day and Indigenous Round.
The Storm scrambled on Sunday to clarify a report that the club would abolish Welcome to Country next season.
Storm officials, like most in the corporate community, consistently offer an Acknowledgment to Country before commercial and business events and meetings.
While desperately trying to remain respectful, Melbourne will look to expand its acknowledgments to include all cultures, not just Australia’s Indigenous, given the NRL is rich with diversity.
Through the club’s thorough review, Melbourne may look to recognise cultures from Tonga, Samoa, Fiji and New Zealand. There could even be a haka performed.
A Storm statement read: “Melbourne Storm is not ‘ditching’ its Welcome to Country or Acknowledgments as suggested by recent media. We will continue these acknowledgments at culturally significant celebrations.
“The strength and success of our club is built on many cultures and communities, and our engagement with them has helped us to reflect the differing views on how we best support and represent each group.
“We will continue to talk to these communities and seek their input to find the most appropriate and respectful way to acknowledge and celebrate culture, including how we best acknowledge First Nations people.
“The club will continue to support First Nations community groups and organisations, as it has done for many years, delivering programs and initiatives that promote positive health, welfare and education outcomes.”
The NRL governing body will continue providing Welcome to Country ceremonies next year for major matches, including State of Origin, Test matches, finals, grand final and All Stars.
All NRL clubs independently determine whether to perform a Welcome to Country ceremony.
Sydney NRL clubs are convinced Melbourne is reviewing its cultural acknowledgments because the Storm was becoming too “caught up” trying to copy the AFL’s strong “woke” stance.
This masthead spoke with multiple NRL club chief executive’s but none wanted to comment publicly for fear of a political backlash.
Several clubs privately claim the AFL was “heavily woke” and that the Storm may have felt a desire to perform cultural ceremonies in AFL-mad Melbourne.
“Good on Melbourne Storm,” said one Sydney-based CEO. “The Storm are located in the heartland of the AFL, who are so woke.
“Melbourne probably felt they had to do every game when they didn’t.”
Another CEO said: “The AFL is very woke and every sporting organisation based in Melbourne probably wants to keep up with the AFL.”
One chief executive also suggested Indigenous elders charged exorbitant money to perform a Welcome to Country.
Welcome to Country ceremonies attracted considerable negativity in September when Aboriginal elder, Uncle Brendan Kerin, before a GWS v Brisbane semi-final in Sydney, told the crowd: “(A Welcome to Country) is not a ceremony we’ve invented to cater for white people.”
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Originally published as Welcome to Country: Storm to review and overhaul its cultural diversity plan for 2025
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