The 3 NRL games only attract an extra 35 k attendance than what they would normally get
A test match would get 50k at suncorp and could potentially get 80k at Accor
The big difference would be in the TV ratings, a test match would rate far higher than a Roosters V Dragons game. Do casual fans even care about this game ?
Putting internationals center stage and giving it a large audience would benefit the end of year tests with a knock on effect of larger crowds and viewers.
I can't see the sense of the current draw, we're missing out on having an international that would rate higher than NRL just so the Storm and Roosters get an extra 35k seats sold ??
Which game would Ch 9 prefer ? Dragons Roosters or Australia v NZ ?
The Roosters/Dragons, Storm & Warriors all charge premium prices for ANZAC Day, so it's not just 35K extra seats.
Prices are almost double normal prices & with the extra sales the clubs earn (both GP & Corporate), these matches are commercially worth about the same as 4-6 normal home games.
Unfortunately for a Test match there is no way the NRL could start pricing at $70 & even if we could and we did sell out Accor, we'd still make less money than those club games.
There is also no evidence we could sell out a Suncorp or Accor for an ANZAC Test. As mentioned, we played 17 previously and the highest crowd was 40K (which was actually played on May 5), the average was less than 30K.
The last time the Kangaroos played at a sold out Suncorp was the 2008 RLWC Final, the largest crowd the Kangaroos have ever played in front of at Accor was 30,245 in 1999.
The only two larger Kangaroos crowds in Sydney since then were both in 2008. We got 34K both at the SCG & SFS for the Centenary Test & RLWC opener.
TV ratings for the Roos are solid, when played on a Friday night, they often fall in the top 10 of all FNF matches of the season, but like all NRL games, when played during the day, audience numbers decrease. Again there is no evidence that it would significantly out rate the Dragons v Roosters game.
In terms of your question, which game would 9 prefer? They have been asked, every time they've asked for the NRL fixture.
Don't get me wrong, I'd love for us to have the ANZAC Test again. I went to a huge portion of them, but I can appreciate the commercial realities that make playing on ANZAC Day not practical.
The better argument is to aim for the first weekend in May. The ANZAC Test games played in early May versus late April drew bigger crowds & better TV audiences and its not a day the clubs will push back on.
