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The NRL’s 2024 season opener in Las Vegas will propel the game’s international status, broadcasting opportunities and excel Rugby League discourse in both the U.S and Australia. However, the decision is a neglect of regional Rugby League where the game is most vulnerable.
It is easy to assume Rugby League’s growing tv audiences and attendances ensure an international showpiece. And one must commend the NRL for tapping into what is, essentially, an eccentric sporting landscape with NFL, NBA and MLB’s predominance.
But if the NRL is content in overseas expansion, the same should apply to regional growth.
Granted, NRL games in Tamworth, Mudgee, Bathurst, Coffs Harbour, Wagga Wagga, Cairns, Sunshine Coast and Bundaberg were welcome additions. But most games were first-grade clubs solemnly willing to take a home game to the regions – the Penrith Panthers to Bathurst is a prime example.
Isaah Yeo (Photo by Matt King/Getty Images)
The abrupt end to the City vs Country match is another dark chapter in the NRL’s neglect for the regions. The annual game bridged the disparity between City and Country and was, by most accounts, a unique calling of regional footy fans to unite under one cause.
The sight of 10,000 fans at Tamworth’s Scully Park, inspired by the likes of Latrell Mitchell, ought to be revered. But the Vegas decision is an indirect swipe at bush footy; additionally, it highlights where the NRL’s priorities lie.
Bush footy is critical to NRL pathways. Alan Tongue, Issah Yeo and Latrell Mitchell as regional prodigies. But with rapidly declining participation, bush footy is currently on life support.
Regional heavyweight clubs Cowra Magpies, Helensburgh Tigers and Wagga Brothers have withdrawn from 2023 first division. The trend is not localised either, with Junee Diesels, Glen Innes Magpies, Tambarumba Greens and Guyra Super all withdrawing from lack of participants.
There are many causes behind the decline of Country Rugby League participants. Most commonly, the incursion of AFL in regional NSW is a prominent reminder that the regions are essential to the NRL. Parents tend to highlight the dangerous head contacts, coupled with subsequent concussions, as a distinct reason to deviate from grassroots Rugby League.
However, the NRL have done little to improve bush footy. ARL chairman Peter V’landys is intent on opening American pathways to the NRL. “When we were doing the broadcast negotiations it became very evident that we were a small market in Australia of only 26 million people and when we spoke to Amazon, they said well why would we be interested in NRL when there are 46 million people in California?” he said.
Peter V’landys (Photo by Matt King/Getty Images)
If the NRL continue to ignore the fundamental status of bush footy, it is safe to assume the same litany of issues in Rugby Union will encroach on League. One must look no further than post 2003 Rugby World Cup to distinguish the sudden change in Union’s popularity, with grassroots depravity as the prime force behind the decline.
Can the NRL not provide a blockbuster double header to the regions? Can it not use the same investments with Vegas to administer plausible mechanisms to sustain bush footy? Can it not utilise the same enthusiasm with Vegas to endorse the thousands of bush footy volunteers while empowering the regions? After all, the United States has contributed nothing to the game since 1908.
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But perhaps the biggest issue with Vegas, is from a social perspective. It is no secret that Las Vegas is the embodiment of glorified gambling, ethical scarcity and irrational thought. Gambling in Australia is an extensive social issue, accounting for domestic violence, financial insecurity and mental health erosion.
Regional Australia has long suffered with the impacts of gambling. Small town communities – often where bush footy is at its strongest – are vulnerable due to limited resources and activities. Gambling is a quick outlet for entertainment in the regions where other forms of entertainment are in short supply.
(Photo by Jeremy Ng/Getty Images)
The NRL’s association with gambling attracts a critical social lens, often examining the normalisation of gambling advertisements during games. As such, the gambling industry is embedded as an essential stakeholder, accounting for the NRL’s second highest revenue earner behind broadcasting. But gambling remains an existential issue in regional communities, leading to increased homelessness and financial risk that are detrimental to small-town communities.
The Vegas opener reiterates that the NRL’s instincts are fixated on big city appeal. Furthermore, it is certainly symbolic of glorified gambling where the NRL often lack critical social awareness. Granted, we should not assume that one city in the U.S. enables gambling, but the already easy promotion of gambling will certainly exacerbate.
The Vegas decision does not benefit the growth of bush footy, nor does it signal solidarity with the regions from both a social and sporting perspective. It is a step in the opposite direction when Country Rugby League is almost on its knees.
