{"id":507780,"date":"2026-02-27T15:23:09","date_gmt":"2026-02-27T15:23:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/507780\/"},"modified":"2026-02-27T15:23:09","modified_gmt":"2026-02-27T15:23:09","slug":"super-league-is-nrls-secret-weapon-as-12000-english-fans-head-to-vegas-super-league","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/507780\/","title":{"rendered":"Super League is NRL\u2019s secret weapon as 12,000 English fans head to Vegas | Super League"},"content":{"rendered":"

Rugby league\u2019s greatest ride returns to Las Vegas this weekend with Super League nestled firmly in the sidecar. Two NRL fixtures kick off the Australian season while Hull KR and Leeds Rhinos open up the Allegiant Stadium action on Saturday. More than 12,000 English fans are expected to make the trip and add plenty of colour, flair and, most importantly, value.<\/p>\n

This has been a strong start to 2026 for the game in England, evidenced last week by Hull KR\u2019s triumph over Brisbane Broncos<\/a> in the World Club Challenge. It is handy for Super League that the Robins are one of two clubs in Vegas representing the competition this week and they have even flown the trophy over to hammer home the point that Super League holds the cards when it comes to the best club side in the game.<\/p>\n

But the mere presence of Super League<\/a> standing side-by-side with its Australian counterparts this weekend should emphasise why greater cohesion between the sport\u2019s two premier competitions can have immeasurable benefits for the game in the northern hemisphere. While Super League sweats over the outcome of a new TV deal that could dictate the medium- and long-term financial future of the competition, the NRL is accelerating its plans for global domination.<\/p>\n

Las Vegas is just the start. It will ink its own record broadcast deal later this year, having just revealed record-breaking revenue numbers. Talk of a global round for the NRL<\/a> as early as next year is now brewing with London earmarked as a central part of the plans \u2013 which could bring the future of London Broncos into clearer view on this side of the world, too, with strong expectations they will be a Super League club in 2027.<\/p>\n

The NRL\u2019s commander in chief, Peter V\u2019landys, will sit down for talks with English officials this weekend with a view to ironing out a deal that will result in potential investment from the Australian game into Super League, bringing the two competitions together like never before. While the bright lights of Las Vegas and the glamour surrounding the fixtures at Allegiant Stadium catch the eye, this is perhaps the real story of note if you scratch beneath the surface.<\/p>\n

Fans pack Fremont Street at the now-traditional team unveiling. Photograph: Ian Hitchcock\/Getty Images<\/p>\n

\u201cI think the NRL have been very receptive towards us and we are expecting to receive something from them in terms of a closer working relationship,\u201d Rhodri Jones, the CEO of RL Commercial, explains. \u201cThey see the value in Super League. For the last fortnight we\u2019ve been on the global stage; with Hull KR<\/a> winning the World Club Challenge and putting eyeballs on the game in Australia, and now we\u2019re in Vegas off the back of a successful start.\u201d<\/p>\n

There is immense value in Super League, underlined by the footprint the competition has on the Vegas event. At the now-traditional team unveiling on Fremont Street on Thursday, the noise of Hull KR and Leeds supporters drowned out their Australian counterparts and left NRL officials impressed. \u201cIt has once again justified why Super League belongs at this event,\u201d Jones says.<\/p>\n

Super League is trying to emulate the NRL by pushing into an events culture, too. This summer, Wigan and Catalans will take a game to Paris. Next year, the Warriors and Warrington will go to Dublin. Gone are the days of trying to preach to the converted, it seems; and if the NRL gets fully on board, that mood will only grow further.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s globalisation of sport,\u201d Jones says. \u201cThat\u2019s ultimately what the headline is and coming here means rugby league is being globalised; that\u2019s what every serious sport is doing. The NFL do it in Europe, don\u2019t they? It captures interest at home too; last year, the Vegas game was the most-watched Super League game on Sky Sports. Bigger than the Grand Final. That\u2019s unheard of.\u201d<\/p>\n

The mood is shifting on the ground too. Hull KR have had to forfeit a home game to make this clash with Leeds happen in Vegas, meaning they will turn a loss on the trip. Leeds also say they expect to lose money given the travelling costs but with the lure of what the NRL can offer now within tantalising reach, clubs like these are seeing the bigger picture.<\/p>\n

Hull KR captain Elliot Minchella runs with ball during a joint training session with NRL\u2019s North Queensland Cowboys at James Regional Sports Park in Las Vegas. Photograph: Alex Whitehead\/SWpix.com\/Shutterstock<\/p>\n

\u201cToo much of a deal is being made of this \u2013 it\u2019s fine,\u201d Hull KR\u2019s CEO, Paul Lakin, says. \u201cIt\u2019s not a big loss to us. It\u2019s a small loss, but we budgeted to make a small loss. We\u2019ve got top players, and the top players want to play in the biggest games and in the best stadiums in the world. We have to create that platform. It\u2019s a once-in-a-lifetime experience.\u201d<\/p>\n

Super League needs the NRL, that much is obvious on so many levels. But in Sin City, perhaps the NRL needs Super League just as much based on what we\u2019ve seen once again this week in terms of the support from English fans and the colour they have added to this carnival of rugby league.<\/p>\n

The challenge now is to convert this hype into real change on the ground back home: and after months of posturing, that is where V\u2019landys and the NRL perhaps finally enter the picture.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Rugby league\u2019s greatest ride returns to Las Vegas this weekend with Super League nestled firmly in the sidecar.…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":507781,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[568],"tags":[64,63,761,762,158,85],"class_list":["post-507780","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-nrl","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-national-rugby-league","tag-nationalrugbyleague","tag-nrl","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/507780","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=507780"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/507780\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/507781"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=507780"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=507780"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=507780"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}