NFL in Australia: artist rendition exposes reality of Los Angeles Rams showcase

The reality of the NSW government fumbling its opportunity to bring the NFL to Sydney has been laid bare.

An artist's rendition of how an NFL game may look when the MCG hosts its maiden Australian fixture in 2026. Picture: CV Media

The reality of the NSW government fumbling its opportunity to bring the NFL’s maiden Australian showcase to the Harbour City has been laid bare, with an artist rendition revealing the mass of empty MCG surface set to be broadcast across the world.

America’s undisputed No.1 code announced last week it was bringing a regular-season game to Melbourne for three years from 2026, a major coup for the state that was in a bidding war with NSW and Western Australia for hosting rights.

As revealed by The Australian’s Andrew Webster, Chris Minns’ Labor government mysteriously pulled funding for the major event late last year, leaving Victoria virtually bidding against itself.

The NFL had been impressed by WA’s offer but preferred an east coast state, given the shorter travel time for its players.

Sources told The Australian they estimate the figure is between $15m to $20m per match.

Although the financial benefits to the NFL are obvious, the presentation of the games will be a significant challenge.

An NFL gridiron field dimensions sit at 110m long and 48m wide, while in stark contrast the MCG is 174m by 149m.

An artist’s mock-up of how the game will likely appear shows large sections of turf between the limits of the field and the expected 100,000 people in attendance.

The NRL takes State of Origin games to the MCG on a rotational basis, with Perth’s Optus Stadium and the Adelaide Oval, but the event rarely sells out in large part due to the poor vantage point of a rectangular game from oval seating.

Rugby league fields are up to 122m long and 68m wide, substantially larger than the gridiron.

The NFL will be faced with not only filling the large empty spaces for the all-important TV broadcast, but also justifying what are expected to be expensive ticket prices for fans sitting a large distance from the action.

The rendering was posted to X, with fans labelling it “horrendous”.

Sydneysider and Philadelphia Eagles offensive tackle Jordan Mailata celebrates after winning Super Bowl LIX on Monday.

“You’ll be watching the big screen no matter where you are cause you’ll be that far away,” a fan replied to the mock-up.

“The MCG is the worst stadium for soccer and NFL. It only suits AFL and cricket. Those on level 1 will not be able to see anything and those in the nose bleeds seats will be the same,” an X user added

“They need to play this on a football/league specific pitch not an oval … especially for the money it costs to buy a ticket,” a punter said.

“Imagine what you will pay to be 60 metres away from the field,” another replied.

Sydney’s Accor Stadium at Homebush, despite offering about 17,000 fewer seats, is a rectangular stadium purpose built for rectangular sports.

It is also in the heartland of Australia’s greatest NFL export, hulking 203cm, 166kg Sydneysider Jordan Mailata.

Mailata, a South Sydney Rabbitohs junior told by the code he was too big to play, hails from nearby Bankstown, and would have provided an easy marketing tool for the NSW government.

The three games will feature the Los Angeles Rams, the team partnered with Australia as part of the NFL’s global expansion program.

Perhaps even more comically for Mr Minns, the franchise rumoured to be facing the Rams in 2026 is the Super Bowl LIX champion Philadelphia Eagles, starring Mailata.

Bondi Beach also played host to the NFL’s official 2024 Australian season launch with a flashy event at the Bondi Pavilion.

Fans in attendance were broadcast around the world on the official US coverage for the game featuring, you guessed it, Mailata.

Following the Premier’s decision not to allocate funding towards its NFL bid, few at the government’s tourism arms Destination NSW and Venues NSW were surprised.

A spokesperson for Labor said it was prioritising “return on investment for the people of NSW”.

“The NSW government via Destination NSW participated in the NFL host city selection process for the opportunity to bring matches to Australia, but unfortunately not every global event will come to NSW,” a government spokesman said.

“The NSW government supports a wide range of events from the Rugby World Cup through to regional events like the Mundi Mundi Bash that provide a vital boost to local tourism operators.”

The Premier did deem the UFC worthy of a $16m commitment to host three pay-per-view events over four years at Accor Stadium’s neighbour Qudos Bank Arena.

It appears he didn’t value the NFL the same way Victoria did, despite, as Webster writes, US citizens account for the second-largest group of international travellers into Sydney.