‘35,000 more seats’: Victoria’s $5m ace to pinch NRL grand final

NRL supremo Peter V’landys has gone public with a declaration the 2023 NRL Grand Final could be taken away from Sydney.

Game 1 of the 2018 State of Origin series at the MCG.

Rugby league boss Peter V’landys has stated the MCG could be an option to host this year’s NRL grand final amid Victoria’s push to host 2027 Rugby World Cup matches.

The Age reported V’landys is open to taking the NRL grand final, which has always been in Sydney apart from the 2021 decider in Brisbane due to Covid, interstate with the home of the AFL grand final Melbourne Cricket Ground a viable option.

The developments comes as Victoria outlined a lucrative financial plan to host a number of 2027 Rugby World Cup matches at the MCG.

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Visit Victoria chief executive Brendan McClements revealed his state was keen to add to their list of high-profile sporting events, including the Australian Formula One Grand Prix this weekend.

McClements stated the 2027 Rugby World Cup and the NRL Grand Final were both on his agenda.

“Peter (V’landys) also said recently: ‘I haven’t got a deal for the NRL grand final.’ It’s a purely commercial decision. Our phone hasn’t rung’,” McClements said at the SportNXT conference in Melbourne on Tuesday.

“I have got 35,000 more seats for Peter. In a purely commercial decision, that is $4-5 million waiting for him. So, I would like to talk to Peter at some stage about that.”

Game 1 of the 2018 State of Origin series at the MCG.

V’landys responded to The Age over McClements’ comments.

“I would love to hear from Brendan. It could be an option for us,” V’landys said.

McClements used the same logic for attracting more bums on seats for the NRL decider in his bid to host World Cup matches, including the final in 2027.

“From an economic perspective, from a brand perspective, that is a terrific event. We want two semi-finals, the three-v-four play-off and the final played there [MCG] in front of 100,000 people,” McClements said.

Peter V’landys is open to moving the NRL grand final to Melbourne.

“I don’t understand why rugby just doesn’t say yes. It’s 80,000 more seats, it might be 100,000 more seats [than NSW]. From a commercial sense, what are you going to say, that’s $100 [per] rugby yielding visitors, so it’s probably $20, $30, $40 million more by selling 100,000 more seats.

“That is a no-brainer - the best stadium in Australia [MCG] - in a city where history happens, and you are going add $40 million more than anywhere else.”

By the same reasoning the NRL and V’landys would be mad not to at least hear a pitch from McClements over the possibility of relocating rugby league’s decider to Melbourne.

Originally published as ‘35,000 more seats’: Victoria’s $5m ace to pinch NRL grand final