NRL 2025 ‘Watchability’ rankings: Ranking teams from 1 to 17 on box office appeal, villains and potential for drama

They’re brimming with star power and have a murky recent off-field track record, but the Brisbane Broncos can’t crack No.1 spot on TRAVIS MEYN’S watchability rankings for 2025.

What makes an NRL team watchable?

Is it on-field star power, box office appeal or those players everybody loves to hate?

Which coach is a week away from being sacked or who has the worst fashion?

The 2025 NRL Premiership is shaping up to be a fascinating affair as the Penrith Panthers chase a fifth straight title.

But while the Panthers and Storm will start the season as premiership favourites in the betting markets, which are the teams you can’t wait to watch?

Will Wayne Bennett’s Rabbitohs attract more eyeballs than ever before or will three-time wooden spooners Wests Tigers prove irresistible to fans?

Here are our 2025 NRL watchability rankings.

Des Hasler appears to have succeeded in doing what he set out to do – make the Titans even more anonymous. Hasler’s two-month pre-season media ban has well and truly got Gold Coast flying under the radar, so much so we had to check the club still existed. The Hasler siege mentality is in full swing and the Titans have given him full control of the club, hoping it delivers results following three consecutive bottom four finishes.

If the Titans don’t fire in Hasler’s second year, where do they go next? The return of Big Tino from injury gives the least intimidating jersey in the NRL a villain and Reagan Campbell-Gillard may be able to stir up some rivals. The Titans have plenty of strike in this team and could be box office gold – or they could flop again. Get out the popcorn and see what transpires.

We're bound to see a Dessie blow up in 2025.

The Dragons were supposed to collect last year’s wooden spoon but Shane Flanagan got them into finals contention in one of the great coaching efforts. Flanagan finally gave in to Ben Hunt’s wish to quit and has gone on a signing spree since, even if he has assembled a Dad’s Army with the likes of Damien Cook and Clint Gutherson.

It’s hard to see the Dragons being a premiership threat this year but they could be one of those annoying teams that gets in the way of others and ruins finals dreams. The Red V have been a bit lost in recent years but that might be about to change and they’ll always have a loyal supporter base that comes out of the woods when the wins start flowing.

Will the Dragons' new-look spine help the club breathe fire?

The Cowboys have been struggling to get to the next level. They are packed with talent and have some of the game’s best young players, but for some reason can’t seem to get to the Promised Land.

Coach Todd Payten knows his team can score points – just watch Scott Drinkwater dance around when he has the ball – but has put an emphasis on defence this year as he searches for a way to get North Queensland to the last game of the year.

It’s hard to find a villain in Townsville, although the fiery John Bateman can rub people the wrong way, and they’ve got some of the most loyal fans in the NRL. The Cowboys should be thereabouts, but whether they can take the next step is the big question.

Buckle up, Cowboys fans, Johnny Bateman is in town.

Just as Manly was about to fall down the watchability rankings, Matt Lodge came in and saved the day. The return of Lodge to the Sea Eagles, along with Nathan Brown, Josh Aloiai and Haumole Olakau’atu, has ensured their villains score remains strong.

This is offset by some of the nicest guys in the league in Daly Cherry-Evans and the Trbojevic brothers, Jake and Tom, who would struggle to kill a cockroach. The Sea Eagles look a little boring on paper, but Anthony Seibold has a squad that should be in the top eight mix again. Either way, nobody likes Manly and you’ll probably watch them in the hope they lose.

Rugby league's nicest man loves a rev up.

Oh Ricky, you’re so fine. Is there a better coach in the NRL to watch than Ricky Stuart? Forgot about Canberra’s box office appeal on the field, Stuart is just as entertaining off it with his passion and press conferences.

Throw in mullet-rocking props Joe Tapine and Josh Papalii along with some of the game’s most exciting prospects in Chevy Stewart, Ethan Strange, Xavier Savage and Ethan Sanders, and this is a team with plenty to keep an eye on.

Will we see another sideline injury from a celebrating Sticky?

The Sharks came in last in the 2024 watchability rankings and on reflection that was probably a bit harsh. I’m surprised Buzz Rothfield didn’t call for my head. They finished in the top four and have some exciting players like Ronaldo Mulitalo and Sione Katoa along with a new villain in Addin Fonua-Blake. Throw Toby Rudolf into the mix and this is a team with some character. Now, can someone please ask Nicho Hynes what brand of moose he uses in his hair? You can’t beat that wet look.

Rugby league's Mr. Perfect.

It might be Kristian Woolf’s first year in charge of the Dolphins but the honeymoon is over at Redcliffe. The NRL’s youngest club has had two seasons in the top grade and it’s now time to deliver a finals appearance. Even the Titans made the play-offs in season three.

Wayne Bennett has moved on which has instantly brought down the box office appeal of the Dolphins and Woolf isn’t the type to cause a stir in the media. Tom Gilbert hasn’t played in nearly two years and could explode in his return while Hamiso Tabuai-Fidow has the potential to be the most exciting player in the game.

Felise Kaufusi is bound to smash someone and earns six points alone in the fashion stakes for his haircut. Will it be Phins Up or Phins Down at Redcliffe this year? We’re about to find out.

Has anyone checked on Craig Bellamy since last year’s grand final loss to Penrith? The Storm were shattered to lose that decider after clearly being the NRL’s best team in the regular season. It was the one that got away and will hurt for a long time. But what that would have done is fire up Bellamy and his charges even more.

If Papenhuyzen, Munster, Grant and Hughes stay fit, the Storm will be in the grand final – it’s a near certainty. Throw in big Nelson Asofa-Solomona and Tigers recruit Stefano Utoikamanu to the grand final team and it’s hard to see anyone beating Melbourne in the big dance. Love them or hate them, you have to respect the Storm’s ability to consistently produce, even if purple is a strange colour for a footy team.

Please, no more, not another year of Penrith dominance. Look, I appreciate greatness but a fifth straight Panthers premiership would be plain embarrassing for the NRL’s other 16 clubs. Can someone please step up and do something about this?

Penrith’s villains rating has copped a massive hit following Jarome Luai’s move to the Tigers. Isaah Yeo is too nice for his own good and we can’t get enough of Nathan Cleary and Mary Fowler – have you ever seen a cuter couple? Propose already, Nathan!

The Panthers look slick in black or pink, have style off the field and Brian To’o’s game day diet is the stuff of legends. But we can’t possibly endure a five-peat.

Australian sport's golden couple - Nath Cleary and Mary Fowler.

What do the Warriors have in store for us this year? The Wahs seem to do the opposite of what everyone predicts. When they were supposed to struggle in 2023, they made the preliminary finals. When the expectation was high last year, they flopped. They’ve lost probably their three best players in Shaun Johnson, Addin Fonua-Blake and Tohu Harris. James Fisher-Harris is a big recruit, but Titans duo Tanah Boyd and Erin Clark aren’t of the same calibre. Last year we warned you to invest in the Warriors at our own risk. There are no guarantees. When it’s fun, it’s fun. But when it’s bad, it can get very bad. Let’s hope for the former because everyone loves the NRL when the Warriors are flying.

RTS is still breaking ankles.

No team has lost more talent this year than the Roosters. How will they replace Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii, Jared Waerea-Hargreaves, Luke Keary, Joey Manu, Sitili Tupouniua and Terrell May? Sam Walker and Brandon Smith are also sidelined long-term with knee injuries. It looks like a recipe for disaster but they have a handy coach at the helm in Trent Robinson and chairman Nick Politis doesn’t accept failure.

Despite $3 million of talent walking out the door, and Chad Townsend being their only notable signing, the Roosters will still cop accusations of rorting the salary cap from jaded rival fans. It’s just the way it is. The Roosters will be an intriguing story in 2025 and we’re bound to see Spencer Leniu do something crazy.

Let’s call them the Newcastle Pongas. Dally M star Kalyn Ponga is nearly single-handedly carrying the Knights in the watchability rankings. Ponga gives the Knights star power, box office appeal and fashion credibility. If not for him, they would be pretty boring. But that also brings some issues. If Ponga doesn’t fire, it’s hard to see Newcastle doing much in the competition.

And if that is the case, coach Adam O’Brien is going to come under scrutiny again which raises the potential for drama. The Knights’ supporter base blows me away every year with their loyalty and they could be tested again if things don’t go to plan.

The Bulldogs were one of the big improvers last year but the jury is out on whether they can back it up or were one-hit wonders. No one has recruited more aggressively than Phil ‘Gus’ Gould in the past few years and the fruits of his labour are there to be seen.

The Dogs of War were out in force last year and the fans returned to Belmore. There’s no better sight than a bunch of Doggies fans going nuts during a dominant Canterbury win. You can bet Reed Mahoney will get under someone’s skin each week and Viliame Kikau in full flight is a sight to behold. Doggies, doggies, doggies!

Has there ever been a greater crash following a grand final appearance? The Eels simply haven’t recovered since being smashed by Penrith in the 2022 decider. Things have gone from bad to worse for Parramatta, sacking coach Brad Arthur last year and now having their top players Mitchell Moses and Dylan Brown running the club thanks to ridiculous contracts.

The Eels seem to be where they belong, but that’s not to say Jason Ryles can’t turn things around this year. However he is up against it given the multitude of issues at the Eels. Parramatta will be must-watch this year, even if it’s just to see what Josh Addo-Carr looks like in yellow. And for those reasons, the Eels have become one of the most watchable teams.

Where do we begin with Wests? Three years, three wooden spoons, and there’s no guarantee another isn’t on the way to Concord in 2025. The Tigers seem to have finally turned a corner when it comes to sorting out their dysfunctional board and they’ve been splashing cash to bring some talent in. Jarome Luai’s recruitment instantly raises their villains score and the potential for drama is sky high given the pressure on Benji Marshall to turn things around.

Despite their struggles, Tigers fans remain eternally optimistic and packed out Campbelltown last year for the Spoon Bowl in which their team produced the most Wests Tigers performance ever, losing 60-26 to Parramatta. The Tigers have surged up the watchability ladder this year, if only it was as important as the NRL ladder.

Michael Maguire has banned six packs on show at training and you won’t be seeing Reece Walsh in Pit Viper sunnies and a cowboy hat on game day. Welcome to the Brisbane Broncos of 2025. The Broncos topped last year’s watchability rankings, recording a near perfect score in every category – and they delivered in a drama-charged train wreck of a season that you couldn’t take your eyes off. Ezra Mam was still creating headlines in the off-season. Maguire has deliberately taken the sting out of Red Hill and brought some egos into line, but the Broncos will once again be must-watch in 2025. They have as much star power as any team in the NRL and opposition fans love to see the Broncos fail.

Madge has banned the Pit Viper sunnies in 2025.

Wayne Bennett is back and things were ticking over nicely in the pre-season until a horror training session last week when skipper Cameron Murray suffered a ruptured Achilles and Latrell Mitchell was rubbed out for the first six weeks of the competition. The Rabbitohs need Bennett’s super powers more than ever after a couple of years to forget for the pride of the league. They’ve hurtled down the ladder, sacked coach Jason Demetriou and seen Mitchell skip from scandal to scandal.

Will Bennett have the Bunnies bouncing in 2025?

That should all change this year. Key word, should. Bennett will bring some pizazz back to Redfern and there is enough talent in this Souths squad to challenge for the top eight. Even if they start slowly, Bennett will lob some grenades in a press conference, or dance for the dressing room cameras, to distract the media for long enough to get his team back on track. The Rabbitohs will be must watch, if your eyes can deal with cardinal and myrtle.

Originally published as NRL 2025 ‘Watchability’ rankings: Ranking teams from 1 to 17 on box office appeal, villains and potential for drama