Opinion: When I think of sport, I think of music; the Super Bowl half-time show, Eye Of The Tiger playing over the iconic Rocky montage, the TikTok edits of the Paris 2024 Olympics to Taylor Swift’s The Alchemy.
Which is why I think it’s an absolute travesty the NRL grand final will be going ahead without any pre-game entertainment after talks with Aussie singer Tones and I collapsed.
Tones and I broke her silence on the NRL grand final hours after news of negotiations for her to headline the sporting event had fallen through. Graphic: Polly Hanning
Every year, millions of Australians who don’t watch any other NRL games tune in to the start of the grand final just to see who hits the stage.
Crowds at the stadium love it, and diehard fans, casual watchers, supportive partners and kids at home are happy to take in the spectacle before kickoff.
I follow the NRL (mainly for the office tipping comp) and most games make it onto the TV in my house, but I only really watch the start of the grand final with proper dedication – and that’s because I want to see the pre-game show.
It’s always a sight to behold. Even if the artist isn’t to my taste, or they do a poor job, you know it’s going to be a hot topic for the next few days.
Aussies bond over loving or hating it every year, which is why it’s such a disappointment that this year, the NRL will be giving fans absolutely nothing because talks with Tones and I’s team broke down last week.
To be honest, I don’t think Tones and I was ever the right choice for the gig.
Though she’s a four-time ARIA Award winner and certified hitmaker with tracks like Fly Away and Dance Monkey, she doesn’t really fit the NRL grand final vibe.
Nor did last year’s pick for pre-game entertainment, Teddy Swims.
The cast of Tina: The Tina Turner Musical was a bizarre choice for 2022, and Kate Miller-Heidke in 2021 and Amy Shark in 2020 failed to impress many fans waiting to watch 80 minutes of grown men tackling each other bloody.
It seems the NRL has had an entertainment problem for years now.
Since the COVID-19 pandemic, it has failed to attract the calibre of international talent that once made millions tune in to witness headline acts like Macklemore, Keith Urban, Slash, and Good Charlotte.
Even some of its Aussie picks have felt like the wrong fit, not because artists like Tones and I or Amy Shark are bad, they just don’t make the kind of punk or rock tunes that get a crowd going for a grand final.
There’s a reason The Kid LAROI was a massive hit in 2024; he’s current, and he makes music that gets NRL fans pumped.
The Kid LAROI was a major hit at the 2024 NRL Grand Final match. Getty
If the NRL wants Aussie artists, give us Amyl and The Sniffers, Parkway Drive, or Stand Atlantic, or even Royel Otis or Tame Impala.
Give us something big, something modern, something hype. But give us something, at least.
Tones and I, whose real name is Toni Watson, revealed today that she couldn’t do the grand final due to a prior commitment with Macklemore in the US.
“An offer was presented to Tones via management on September 5. Tones had a prior commitment with Macklemore in America and explored all avenues to make it work,” a statement from her rep to ABC Sport read.
“Nothing was signed or confirmed in writing. Due to the last-minute nature and prior commitments by Tones, we were unable to accept the offer.”
Tones and I wished NRL the best and even offered a list of possible replacements via an Instagram Story on Tuesday.
She suggested Aussie artists like G Flip, Ruel, Budjerah, Baker Boy, and Kaiit should get the opportunity.
Clearly she agrees anything is better than empty stage at the grand final.
G Flip, Ruel and Budjerah are among Tones and I’s NRL grand final entertainment suggestions. Getty
On Wednesday morning, Australian Rugby League Commission chairman Peter V’landys told Today the NRL has long considered scrapping the pre-game entertainment.
“We’ve been toying with the idea for a couple of years now in putting – rather than spending a hundred thousand dollars a minute over 11 minutes on a performer – into grassroots underprivileged kids,” he said.
“It’s a bit like buying a cheeseburger for the pickle. You don’t do that. You buy it for the cheeseburger.”
He added that it cost about $1-1.5 million for an 11-minute production, money he’d rather spend on grassroots NRL projects.
“Rather than giving a performer $90,000 a minute, we would prefer to give it to grassroots,” he told the Sydney Morning Herald on Tuesday.
“We believe that the entertainment is our game. It’s more the media that put themselves into a frenzy who we get as performer. But when you look at it realistically for 11 minutes, it’s not worth it.
“People will come to the game with or without it. We believe the money is better spent on junior rugby league.”
Peter V’landys insists the NRL was already considering scrapping the pre-game show. Dominic Lorrimer
My response to that is simple.
The NRL hit record audiences, record attendance, record participation and the strongest financial position in the game’s history in 2025, raking in a record $845.6 million in revenue.
I reckon it could probably stand to spend $1 million on a pre-game show and inject another $1 million into junior rugby league.
So, in the humble words of the little girl in the Old El Paso ad: Why not have both?
Anything is better than an empty field before a grand final.