NRL 2023: Government election commitments could force NRL grand final interstate

NSW premier Chris Minns says he wants to the NRL grand final to remain in Sydney, yet his government’s immediate priorities seem to work against that plan.

The NRL grand final could be up for sale, as part of a rugby league ‘Super Bowl’. Picture: Getty Images.

• Minns denies desperate NRL clubs

NSW premier Chris Minns says his government will fight to keep the grand final in Sydney and has revealed plans to meet NRL officials soon to resolve the standoff over the game’s multimillion dollar showpiece.

Premier Minns has only been in government a matter of days but he has quickly found himself in the crosshairs of the NRL and their clubs over funding for suburban grounds and the future of the grand final.

ARL Commission chair Peter V’landys has raised the prospect of taking the game’s biggest show on the road unless the Minns’ government comes to the party.

Both could know where they stand sooner rather than later after Minns said he was keen to open talks with NRL over the future of the grand final.

“We’ve said we want major events like the NRL grand final to stay in Sydney,” Minns said.

“We’re looking forward to meeting with the NRL soon. We were clear during the campaign about our election commitments to health, education, and cost of living.”

Those last comments sound a warning to the NRL. Premier Minns has made it patently clear since coming into office where his priorities lay and rugby league is seemingly well down the list.

The NRL grand final could be up for sale, as part of a rugby league ‘Super Bowl’. Picture: Getty Images.

The NRL and their clubs have been fighting for years to have funds invested in suburban stadiums in return for keeping the grand final in Sydney for the foreseeable future.

That dream now seems further away than ever. At stake is the grand final after V’landys warned that unless the state government came forward with serious cash, the NRL would be left with little choice but to take the show on the road — there has been talk that holding a grand final in Melbourne could be worth as much as $15 million to the code.

ARL Commission boss Peter V’landys has raised the prospect of taking the game’s biggest show on the road.

News Corp revealed this week that the Victorian and Queensland governments had formally lodged expressions of interest in hosting this year’s grand final and V’landys confirmed he would meet with political chiefs to ramp-up a rugby league Super Bowl.

The final say will rest with the Minns Labor government as they look to keep the grand final in its spiritual home of Sydney.

At the heart of talks between Premier Minns and V’landys will be the previous agreement that the ARL Commission believed they had in place which would have resulted in the grand final remaining in Sydney for the foreseeable future in return for an $800 million investment into stadiums across the competition including Brookvale Oval, Leichhardt Oval, Penrith Stadium and Shark Park.

V’landys said he looked forward to meeting the premier to discuss the grand final’s future — the NRL is yet to announce where this year’s decider will be played.

State against State: PVL puts game up for auction

ARL Commission boss Peter V’landys will hold formal talks with the Victorian Government on a proposed $15 million sell-off of the NRL grand final as rugby league explores taking the decider to AFL heartland.

In one of the most controversial moves in the code’s 115-year history, V’landys confirmed relocating the NRL grand final — similar to the NFL’s Super Bowl — is now a real option in the wake of the New South Wales election.

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Thoughts on moving NRL grand final out of Sydney for money

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News Corp can reveal the Victorian and Queensland governments have formally lodged expressions of interest in hosting this year’s NRL grand final and V’landys says he will meet with political chiefs to ramp-up a rugby league Super Bowl.

Visit Victoria chief executive Brendan McClements revealed on Tuesday his state is keen to host a historic NRL grand final at the 100,000-capacity Melbourne Cricket Ground – the traditional home of the AFL decider.

V’landys will hold urgent talks with newly-minted NSW premier Chris Minns, but says the ARL Commission is open to a tender process in the strongest sign yet the NRL grand final is up for a Super Bowl sale.

“I can confirm the Victorian government and the Queensland government have both reached out,” V’landys told News Corp.

“Now that they have reached out, there is the very real possibility of us exploring an NRL Super Bowl-style option for the grand final.

“The Victorian government has formally expressed interest and I will be meeting with them.

“The Super Bowl format works in the NFL and we are going to seriously explore it for the NRL.

“We will always act in the best interests of the game as a whole, so if we can make millions of dollars to put back into pathways and the players, then naturally we will look at it.

“We are about maximising returns for the game, but front-and-centre for me is always the consideration for the fans of the code.

“They are always at the forefront in my mind … but I will never close the door on an opportunity.”

The prospect of AFL-rabid Victoria stealing another marquee sporting event would be a crushing blow for a NSW government that has had a stranglehold on the NRL grand final.

Queensland’s Suncorp Stadium hosted the 2021 decider between Souths and Penrith due to Covid border restrictions, but taking rugby league’s biggest game of the season to the Victorian market would be a huge strategic decision by the ARL Commission.

One potential stumbling block is the time frame.

This year’s AFL grand final is on Saturday, September 30 at the MCG – 24 hours before the NRL decider.

V’landys, however, is prepared for feasibility discussions with Victoria and Queensland powerbrokers at a time when there is tension with the NSW government over proposed funding to rugby league’s suburban grounds.

V’landys says potentially playing the NRL grand final in AFL heartland is not a concern. It is believed an NRL grand-final contractual sell-off is worth around $15 million, plus many more millions in economic benefits to the winning state.

V’landys will meet with newly minted NSW premier Chris Minns, but admits he is open to a tender process. Picture: NCA Newswire.

“I don’t see an issue playing an NRL grand final in AFL territory,” he said.

“Let’s not forget, we have an NRL club in Melbourne with the Storm, so we’d be mad not to look at the MCG.

“The MCG is one of the greatest stadiums in the world, it is a 100,000-seat venue and people would see travelling to Melbourne for the grand final as a destination holiday.

“Last year, we decided to stay with Sydney because we considered the fan and the customers that support us week in, week out.

“But I am interested in the benefits of a Super Bowl concept for the NRL grand final.

“The boss of Visit Victoria has reached out to us and we will certainly have discussions with them.”

Asked if he is at war with the NSW government over stadium funding, V’landys said: “It’s more complicated than that.

“I won’t go exactly into what we want and need because it’s complex, but I want to give Chris Minns the first opportunity to discuss our plans and where we go with stadium funding and the NRL grand final.

“We will allow the new NSW government to settle in and once they do that, we will have a meeting with them and see where we go with it.

“At the moment, nothing is set in stone for the NRL grand final this year.

“We said we would wait until after the election and now that that election has been finalised, we will begin discussions.”

V’landys has not ruled out the home of Queensland rugby league hosting this year’s NRL grand final after Suncorp’s historic event two years ago.

“We will not be discounting Queensland,” he said.

“We have four teams in Queensland and Annastacia Palaszczuk (premier) is always a pleasure to deal with.

“The Queensland government is professional, courteous and respectful and they saved our bacon during Covid which I will always appreciate.

“The NRL grand final brings enormous economic stimulus to an economy.

“A good government looks at the economic benefits for their state and Queensland will do that with the NRL grand final.”

Originally published as NRL 2023: Government election commitments could force NRL grand final interstate