The Brisbane Broncos appear likely to have to travel to England if the World Club Challenge goes ahead in 2026, and it means 44,000 fans could miss out on seeing the game live. Hull KR beat Wigan in the Super League grand final on Saturday night, meaning Willie Peters’ side will face the Broncos if the World Club Challenge is brought back.
The showpiece game between the champions of the NRL and winners of the Super League was scrapped this year because the Penrith Panthers refused to play. The Panthers held concerns around the workload for players as they would have had to play the World Club Challenge before heading to Las Vegas for the opening round of the NRL season.
The Broncos might have to play the World Club Challenge in England due to similar reasons as to why the Panthers refused to play it. Image: AAP
The Panthers said there wouldn’t have been enough of a pre-season if the WCC went ahead, and the game was scrapped. It sparked concerns it could be discontinued altogether, but NRL boss Andrew Abdo and Broncos CEO Dave Donaghy have both stated they’re keen for it to happen in 2026.
But Hull KR’s victory means the WCC will likely have to take place in England. Similar to the situation with the Panthers, Hull will travel to Vegas for the third iteration of the NRL and Super League’s joint showpiece in America, where they’ll face Leeds Rhinos.
Hull KR captain Elliot Minchella and coach Willie Peters after the Super League grand final. (Photo by Richard Sellers/PA Images via Getty Images)
It means officials are unlikely to ask Hull to travel to Australia and then Vegas. The Broncos aren’t scheduled for Vegas in 2026, meaning it’d be much easier for them to fly to the UK to face Hull, rather than the other way around.
But it’s likely to rob about 44,000 Broncos fans of attending the game in person. Hull’s home ground Craven Park only has a capacity of 11,000, compared to the 55,000 that Suncorp Stadium in Brisbane can hold. There’s no doubt the Broncos would get a sell-out if the World Club Challenge was held in Australia, with fans frothing over the chance to see the NRL premiers in action for the first time in months.
Hull KR and Broncos both keen to play World Club Challenge
Speaking after the Super League decider, Peters said he’s keen for the WCC to go ahead. “How cool is that?” he said. “To be able to play in the game, we would be representing Super League, not just Hull KR – what a huge honour. The teams who have done it in the past have done it in the right way and we will go out to win that game no matter what – there’s no doubt about it.”
Hull hooker Jez Litten declared he’d love to face the Broncos after watching the NRL grand final on TV. “Watching them, I can’t wait for Payne Haas to be running at me for 80 minutes,” he said. “It’s something we’ll go after if it’s the next trophy to win. It was inspiring to see Wigan beat Penrith (in 2024) and we want to best showcase Super League. We’ll go after it.”
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Broncos CEO Donaghy said last week: “We understand it wasn’t played last year with Penrith playing in Las Vegas, but we do see it as an important concept for the growth of our sport internationally. I’ve seen it work both here and in the UK, so we’ll have those discussions with the NRL, understand how they see it working, and we’ll go from there.”