By Dan Walsh
NRL chief Andrew Abdo says the prospect of Sydney’s strongest-selling Kangaroos Test in more than 30 years has reinforced the NRL’s expansion bids to create a shorter season and a permanent calendar window for international rugby league.
A 30,000-strong, sold-out Commbank Stadium is on the cards for Sunday’s Pacific Championships final between Australia and Tonga, given strong ticket sales and an impressive fan turn-out for the island nation in recent years.
The Kangaroos have rarely played in Sydney (their last Harbour City outing was a 2017 World Cup pool game against Lebanon at Allianz Stadium), partly due to fears of underwhelming crowds for late season internationals.
Not since the 1992 Ashes, when 40,141 fans packed into the old Sydney Football Stadium and only a few hundred tickets went unsold, has a Kangaroos Test sold as well as this weekend’s four-game fixture.
The Pacific Championships’ strong attendances have come despite the fact that numerous players missed the tournament through injury and burnout fears. The NRL and the RLPA are aligned in pursuing a shortened regular season.
Abdo said ongoing expansion talks and a 20-team NRL competition would allow for a shorter season to be taken into the next broadcast negotiations for 2027 and beyond and that greater emphasis could be placed on the international game.
“We sold five or six thousand tickets [for Sunday’s finals] on Saturday alone and that shows the fans are really keen on this format and the international footy,” Abdo told this masthead.
“There’s Australia against Tonga but we’ve got four games next Sunday and we’ve sold around 20,000 tickets already. We’re expecting to get up into the high 20,000s and if all goes well, we could have a sell-out, which would be fantastic again for the international game.
“If and when expansion is approved by the ARL Commission, quality over quantity is so important when thinking about the season structure.
“Of course, additional teams in the premiership give us extra options when we think about the design of the year and how everything fits together.
Tongan fans dominated the Suncorp Stadium crowd in last month’s Test against Australia.Credit: Getty Images
“We play a tough contact sport. So player well-being, rest, recovery, the length of the pre-season and the break, where we play Origin and how much football there is incredibly important.
“It’s front of mind when we do the draw every year and when we think about the next broadcast deal and the opportunity to have a modified season structure.
“But the international season has proven that a short, but meaningful competition drives value and drives interest.”
The NRL’s expansion plans were hobbled last month by a breakdown in talks with the leading Perth consortium behind the Western Bears bid and head office rejecting another seven NRL licence bids from New Zealand, Queensland and Fiji.
NRL bosses Andrew Abdo and Peter V’landys.Credit: Nick Moir
Negotiations continue though with the WA government and bid teams from New Zealand’s South Island, while the introduction of Papua New Guinean franchise has the influential support of the federal government and a $600 million funding pledge.
Abdo’s support for a shorter season and increased focus on the international game follows similar comments from Kangaroos coach Mal Meninga and RLPA boss Clint Newton.
Newton told SEN Radio last week that a 22-game NRL season could strike a fair balance between content for broadcasters and ease the toll on players.
Tonga’s famed ‘sea of red’ in mass fan turn-outs has boosted Test attendances significantly in recent years.
Last month’s Test against Australia drew 33,196 fans at Suncorp Stadium. Another 22,363 turned out in Auckland for Saturday’s latest giant-killing upset of New Zealand.
Regular scenes of players crying while singing the national anthem and crowds breaking into a hymn during Tonga’s 25-24 triumph speak to a passion among players and fans of the Pacific nations like Samoa, Fiji and Papua New Guinea that Abdo sees as rugby league’s future.
“That mix of sport and a genuine celebration of culture has been very special to see,” Abdo said.
Talking about expansion in the NRL and NRLW gives an opportunity to grow the game and build up new fans in new regions and markets.
“But there’s also aspirations for growth in New Zealand and the Pacific especially too.
“It’s a credit to everyone coming together and saying ‘let’s really commit to the months of October and November for a consistent game plan for international games over the next couple of years’.”
Pacific Championships is Live and Free on Channel 9 & 9Now