NRL targets $300m in assets $65m purchase of Mercure Hotel on the Gold Coast

Three years ago the NRL was broke and fearing for the game’s future during the Covid pandemic. Now they have gone from zero assets to a $65m real estate portfolio. And they’re not done yet.

The NRL has added to its growing $65m asset portfolio, with ARLC chairman Peter V’landys aiming for a $300m target. Picture: Getty Images

The NRL has spent about $20 million buying a third hotel resort in its quest to find new ways to make money.

From being broke and fearful for the game’s financial ­future through Covid, the NRL now owns about $65 million in real estate.

It is understood the resort on Queensland’s Sunshine Coast will be rebranded with a rugby league flavour, including the naming of rooms after Queensland legends of the game such as Wally Lewis and Darren ­Lockyer.

The Sunday Telegraph learned of the acquisition last night after the NRL informed all 17 clubs. It is understood there will be further acquisitions to come with the Rugby League Players Association and 17 clubs supportive of the NRL’s bold ambition to reach $300 million in assets.

The NRL has added to its growing $65m asset portfolio, with ARLC chairman Peter V’landys aiming for a $300m target. Picture: Getty Images

It was during the most recent collective bargaining agreement that the RLPA and the clubs gave the Australian Rugby League Commission chairman Peter V’landys permission to achieve the $300 million target.

With the latest hotel purchase of the Mercure Kawana Waters, the NRL still has more than $200 million in cash to spend on future-proofing the game. The NRL’s asset build comes at a time when rival codes including the A-League and Australian Rugby Union are under major financial pressure. The idea is to secure a revenue stream outside of the game’s traditional reliance on broadcast and sponsorship.

The 4.5-star hotel was identified by the NRL as an asset with the potential for massive growth due to its proximity to Sunshine Coast stadium, hospitals, entertainment precinct and a soon-to-be built international indoor sporting arena that will be used for the 2032 Brisbane Olympic and Paralympic Games.

The NRL has purchased the Mercure Hotel on the Sunshine Coast for an estimated $20 million. Picture: Patrick Woods.

The Dolphins and Melbourne Storm have hosted matches regularly at Sunshine Coast Stadium and it’s anticipated that now the NRL will look to bring more games to the area.

The purchase figure remains undisclosed, but market estimates put the hotels value at about $20 million.

The NRL entered the real estate market with its first purchase in July 2022 with the acquisition of Brisbane’s luxury Gambaro Hotel, which is close to Suncorp Stadium. The NRL paid a reported $25 million.

The NRL first entered the real estate market in 2022, purchasing the Gambaro Hotel in Brisbane for a reported $25m in 2022. Picture – Supplied

The NRL’s latest property purchase has emerged just four months after the body picked up its second accommodation purchase, the Quest Woolooware Bay Hotel, which is adjacent to Cronulla’s PointsBet Stadium. The NRL spent a reported $22 million.

That purchase came on the back of V’landys declaring the game was on a mission to secure much-needed funding from the state government for stadium upgrades of Cronulla’s home, affectionately known as Shark Park.

The hotel is a key feature to the regeneration of the ongoing $1 billion Woolooware Bay Town Centre mixed-use development. At the time of the purchase, V’landys described the code’s asset goal as “crucial” and said it wouldn’t be possible without the support of the RLPA and clubs.