{"id":601684,"date":"2026-09-16T02:52:11","date_gmt":"2026-09-16T02:52:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/601684\/"},"modified":"2026-09-16T02:52:11","modified_gmt":"2026-09-16T02:52:11","slug":"christchurch-nrl-bid-council-confident-city-can-win-20th-licence-for-2029","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/601684\/","title":{"rendered":"Christchurch NRL bid: Council confident city can win 20th licence for 2029"},"content":{"rendered":"

For more than two years, Cox and his team have been in contact with the NRL<\/a> over the possibility of bringing a franchise to Christchurch. <\/p>\n

The group includes heavy hitters<\/a> such as Reon Edwards, who is described as \u201cone of New Zealand rugby league\u2019s most respected governors\u201d, having served at regional, national and international levels; Lauren Quaintance, chair of economic development agency ChristchurchNZ and a former Sky TV executive; Michael Goldstein, the man behind the NZ Open golf event; and council staff.<\/p>\n

\"TheThe team behind Christchurch City Council’s NRL ambitions. Lauren Quaintance, Reon Edwards and Michael Goldstein. The team behind Christchurch City Council’s talks with the NRL and discussions on bringing a team to the city: (from top) Lauren Quaintance, Reon Edwards and Michael Goldstein.<\/p>\n

It had been suggested that the group was subject to non-disclosure agreements with the NRL \u2013 but Cox denied that. <\/p>\n

Quaintance was asked about the likelihood of \u201chaving an NRL team\u201d by 2035 at the Herald\u2019s Project Canterbury event at One NZ Stadium last week and replied: \u201cI couldn\u2019t possibly comment on that.\u201d <\/p>\n

NDA or not, the group is tight-lipped. <\/p>\n

If reports out of Australia are correct, rugby league fans won\u2019t have long to wait until a decision is made \u2013 media from across the Tasman have reported that the 20th franchise will be known before Christmas. <\/p>\n

Australian media has also reported two more bids \u2013 one from Logan in southeast Queensland and another New Zealand bid, from Hamilton. <\/p>\n

The Waikato bid was reportedly tied to Tainui Group Holdings \u2013 but the commercial arm of the iwi denied any involvement. <\/p>\n

A statement from TGH chair Hinerangi Raumati-Tu\u2019ua said: \u201cTGH is not in discussions with the NRL and is not considering an investment of this nature.\u201d <\/p>\n

The highest-profile Australian bid is with the Ipswich Jets. They\u2019re considered to be a credible threat to a Christchurch franchise and can boast the support of two of the game\u2019s most influential figures in Sydney Roosters chairman Nick Politis and South Sydney head coach Wayne Bennett.<\/p>\n

\"WayneWayne Bennett. Photo \/ Photosport<\/p>\n

Speaking to Brisbane\u2019s Courier Mail recently, Ipswich Jets bid chief Steve Johnson talked down Christchurch. <\/p>\n

\u201cThe thing to consider with expansion is the challenges of expanding into a new and unproven market. The problem with Christchurch is that New Zealand\u2019s pathways are not as established as ours in Brisbane\u2019s western corridor,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n

\u201c97 per cent of businesses in New Zealand employ 20 people or fewer \u2013 they don\u2019t have the economy that we possess in Queensland. Brisbane\u2019s western corridor is the fastest-growing region in Australia and with the Olympics coming here in 2032, we\u2019ll only get bigger. <\/p>\n

\u201cJust like the Redcliffe Dolphins, we\u2019re an existing rugby league club with a full rugby league ecosystem from juniors all the way through to, hopefully, the NRL.\u201d <\/p>\n

The Christchurch City Council has previously said it is working with \u201ckey stakeholders\u201d but had also ruled out the city\u2019s most visible bid \u2013 the Southern Orcas. <\/p>\n

\u201cWe have met with the Southern Orcas. However, at this stage we have not seen a financial and commercial model that provides a pathway to success,\u201d the council has said previously. <\/p>\n

\" Prototype Southern Orcas NRL jersey.<\/p>\n

It has been a torrid month for the Southern Orcas \u2013 though they insist they\u2019re still in the hunt to secure their place for the 2029 NRL season. <\/p>\n

As well as being shunned by Christchurch City Council, they\u2019ve been turned down by former Crusaders and All Blacks coach Scott Robertson<\/a> \u2013 their first choice as head coach. <\/p>\n

Unperturbed and unsurprised, Orcas managing director Andrew Chalmers describes rugby league as a \u201ccollision sport on and off the field\u201d. <\/p>\n

He and his business partner Sir Graham Lowe are lining up for another carry as the decision date draws nearer. <\/p>\n

\u201cOur focus has moved from establishing the case for a Christchurch-based NRL club to building the organisation that would actually deliver it,\u201d Chalmers said. <\/p>\n

\"SouthernSouthern Orcas bid is led by Sir Graham Lowe and businessman Andrew Chalmers. Photo \/ Supplied<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have been progressing the capital and investment structure, governance, football operations, commercial partnerships, player pathways, stadium arrangements and the proposed Centre of Excellence.\u201d <\/p>\n

The Orcas have an agreement in place with wealthy Christchurch developer<\/a> the Carter Group to use land near Rolleston as a training base and headquarters. <\/p>\n

Mike Thorpe<\/a> is a senior multimedia journalist for the Herald, based in Christchurch. He has been a broadcast journalist across television and radio for 20 years and joined the Herald in August 2024.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"For more than two years, Cox and his team have been in contact with the NRL over the…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":601685,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[21417,22641,1040,198,4487,2199,4596,4611,5205,19345,2082,19339,111,139,577,69,7798,10715,213,7187,6027],"class_list":["post-601684","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-sports","tag-21417","tag-20th","tag-bid","tag-can","tag-christchurch","tag-city","tag-competition","tag-confident","tag-council","tag-field","tag-for","tag-licence","tag-new-zealand","tag-newzealand","tag-nrl","tag-nz","tag-race","tag-remains","tag-sports","tag-team","tag-win"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/601684","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=601684"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/601684\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/601685"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=601684"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=601684"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=601684"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}