{"id":881946,"date":"2026-09-06T09:40:21","date_gmt":"2026-09-06T09:40:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/881946\/"},"modified":"2026-09-06T09:40:21","modified_gmt":"2026-09-06T09:40:21","slug":"nrl-finals-2026-where-and-when-your-team-will-play-in-week-one","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/881946\/","title":{"rendered":"NRL finals 2026: Where and when your team will play in week one"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Christian<\/p>\n

September 6, 2026 \u2014 5:45pm<\/p>\n

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Cronulla have been booted out of the Shire, South Sydney will host a final at their Moore Park \u201chome\u201d, while the New Zealand Warriors will play their qualifying final at Go Media Stadium before a likely move to Eden Park for the remainder of the play-offs.<\/p>\n

The Rabbitohs and Newcastle will kick-start this year\u2019s NRL finals series at the 42,000-capacity Allianz Stadium \u2013 not Accor Stadium (capacity 80,000) \u2013 because the Knights would have struggled to justify a move to the much bigger venue.<\/p>\n

\"TheThe NRL finals will kick off with the Panthers, Warriors, Sharks and Rabbitohs playing at \u201chome\u201d.NRL Photos<\/p>\n

The Warriors will host the Dolphins on Saturday afternoon at Go Media Stadium, followed by the Sharks against the Cowboys at Allianz Stadium.<\/p>\n

Sunday afternoon will feature a classic one-versus-four all-Sydney blockbuster between minor premiers Penrith and the Sydney Roosters.<\/p>\n

The two powerhouses clashed at the same venue just three weeks ago, when the Roosters triumphed 12-6 in front of 16,768 supporters.<\/p>\n

The big talking point, however, will be the decision to move the Sharks out of Ocean Protect Stadium, even though the NRL resisted the temptation to move the Warriors from their 26,000-seat venue to Eden Park, which can accommodate double that number.<\/p>\n

\"TheThe Rabbitohs have made themselves at home at Allianz Stadium in 2026, particularly after Alex Johnston scored his record-breaking try in March.Getty Images<\/p>\n

The Sharks have been allowed to host finals in week one in recent seasons, including last year when 12,842 people watched them defeat the Roosters in an elimination final, in 2023 when 12,570 fans saw them lose an elimination final to the Roosters, while 12,447 watched them lose a golden-point epic against the Cowboys in 2022.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe want to look after all the Cronulla supporters \u2013 we don\u2019t want any of them to miss out \u2013 and this way none of them will miss out,\u201d ARL Commission executive chairman Peter V\u2019landys said.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ll make sure we put on additional transport so they can make a real event of it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Cronulla chief executive Dino Mezzatesta was naturally disappointed with having to leave the Shire, especially given other clubs had been allowed to play at small home venues. The Sharks stressed to the NRL on the weekend that the Cowboys were unlikely to have many fans travel to Sydney to boost the attendance.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

The Sharks and Cowboys drew less than 20,000 for a semi-final at Allianz in 2024.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf you earn the right to play at home, you should be able to play at home,\u201d Mezzatesta said. \u201cOther teams have not been asked to move to bigger venues, so there\u2019s been no parity in that sense.<\/p>\n

\u201cAt the same time, if we have to move, we\u2019ll work with the NRL to make sure we get 20,000 to 25,000 supporters to Allianz.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe need more than 15,000 supporters because that\u2019s the whole point of moving away. We need to turn that place black, white and blue.\u201d<\/p>\n

Warriors chief executive Cameron George said he was glad his club was granted their week-one wish, and also open to a move to Eden Park in week two or three of the finals.<\/p>\n

\"CronullaCronulla won\u2019t play their finals game at Ocean Protect Stadium on Saturday night.NRL Photos<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re thankful the NRL listened to us,\u201d he said. \u201cWe spoke several times during the week, and everyone appreciates the fact our stadium is extremely capable of hosting finals matches.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe reality is Penrith get to remain at CommBank [and avoid a move to a bigger stadium], and it\u2019s great we get to stay put in the first week.\u201d<\/p>\n

As for moving to Eden Park, George said: \u201cI\u2019ve put a strong case forward about remaining at Go Media Stadium, but we\u2019re always willing and able to sit down with the NRL and talk about further options and what they look like if and when need be.\u201d<\/p>\n

V\u2019landys said: \u201cEden Park is 100 per cent on the map.\u201d<\/p>\n

South Sydney chief Blake Solly said it made sense to play at the Moore Park venue, their spiritual heartland where they will play four regular-season games in 2027, and five in 2028. Chairman Nicholas Pappas confirmed last week the club had already held discussions with Venues NSW about having the South Sydney emblem erected on the side of the stadium next to Sydney FC, the Waratahs and Sydney Roosters.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe showed on Friday night Moore Park is very much a home ground for the Rabbitohs,\u201d Solly said.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve had three iconic moments in that stadium already: there was the final against the Roosters in 2022, Alex Johnston\u2019s record-breaking try [in round two] and Friday\u2019s game for Jai Arrow.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe look forward to creating more iconic moments into the future.\u201d<\/p>\n

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