‘Putting the Bulldogs on the map’: Bulldogs boss wants players to have their names on the back of jerseys in Las Vegas next year

Bulldogs players could become the most recognisable players in the NRL, with their boss putting forward a submission to make a major change to their jersey.

Bulldogs chief executive Aaron Warburton has revealed he wants his players to have their surnames on the back of jerseys, with the club putting in a submission to the NRL for the move to be ticked off as early as next year when they hope to be one of four teams opening the season in Las Vegas.

Jersey sponsorship has made it difficult to find space for players’ names to appear on the back of jerseys, but it’s not an entirely foreign concept in Australia with the Melbourne Storm doing it when they joined the competition in 1998.

The players had their names on the back of jerseys when they won the grand final the following season, but it’s not something we see in the NRL anymore compared with other major leagues where jersey sales go through the roof for certain athletes simply because of the name.

But it’s something we could see as early as next year, with Warburton hoping to have names on the back of jerseys if the Bulldogs are chosen to play in Vegas.

Storm players had their names on the back of jerseys in the 1999 grand final. Picture: Trent Parke

“It’s about pushing the boundaries … It’s about us putting the Bulldogs on the map,” he said on Mornings with Matt White on SEN.

“We’re actually talking with the NRL at the moment because we think it’s the perfect moment to implement surnames on the back of jerseys.

“Something as simple as that we think will really engage the fans.

“There’s a lot of chat online, particularly with our fanbase, around why they can’t see a Burton or Kikau or Mahoney on the backs of jerseys with their number.

“The stats say they want it, and we’re really open to it. It’d be a discussion for us and all the clubs and in particular the top-of-jersey sponsor to negotiate what that would look like to make way for the surname.

“I don’t think you want to implement a surname on the back of a jersey and have it so small that you can’t see it.

“I think it’s important that a player’s brand can go to the next level and kids can aspire to buy and wear the Burton jersey and then one day wear the blue and white.”

Aaron Warburton wants Bulldogs players to have their names on the back of jerseys in Las Vegas next year. Picture: Ezra Shaw/Getty Images

Fans can pay to have their name or a player’s name on the back of jerseys, but this change would mean they wouldn’t have to fork out a little extra to support their hero.

Warburton wants Vegas to be the “guinea pig” for the experiment, and he’s working hard with sponsors to ensure that any potential change could see “exposure (improve) tenfold in a different way”.

“We’ve started some of the conversations internally, particularly the metrics behind it,” he said.

“We don’t want to approach that with any particular sponsor around ‘this is how we’re going to diminish your brand’.

“Some of the early research has suggested that it’ll actually amplify it, just because of the amount of interest and eyeballs on that space.”

Originally published as ‘Putting the Bulldogs on the map’: Bulldogs boss wants players to have their names on the back of jerseys in Las Vegas next year