With the NRL expanding to 18 teams next year – and potentially 20 in the near future – Peter V’landys has confirmed a review into the finals system will occur.
NRL: Ivan Cleary speaks to the media following his sides win over the Sharks.
The NRL will investigate one of the biggest finals shake-ups in the game’s 118-year history with a potential 10-team play-offs series on the horizon for the code.
ARLC chairman Peter V’landys has confirmed a review of the NRL finals system will occur ahead of the competition’s expansion to 18 teams next year – and potentially 20 in the near future.
Following a sizzling start to the 2026 NRL Premiership, V’landys wants more big games and fans staying engaged for longer on the back of a TV ratings bonanza that has dwarfed the AFL’s season launch.
Currently a 17-team competition, the NRL operates on an eight-team, four-week finals series that includes a total of nine games.
However the introduction of the Perth Bears next season, and PNG Chiefs from 2028, will see the NRL expand to a 19-team league within two years.
The ARLC’s ultimate goal is to have a 20-team competition, ideally before 2032, which would see 12 teams excluded from the play-offs under the current finals structure.
V’landys said the introduction of three new teams – Dolphins (2023), Bears (2027) and Chiefs (2028) – to the NRL in five years meant a review of the finals system was due.
“We will be looking at everything,” he said.
“It is a blank piece of paper, especially once we get to 20 teams. That is when we will have the most flexibility.
“That (finals review) is definitely high on the priority list. With more teams, you’ve got to look at the whole competition structure.
“We look at everything through the lens of the fan. We have to look at the structure once we get to more teams.
“I want to satisfy as many fans as possible. If you have more big games at the end of the year to satisfy the fans, then absolutely (we can change it).
“It is a white piece of paper and we will look at it through the lens of the fans.”
The NRL has been operating under its current top eight finals format since the controversial McIntyre System was scrapped in 2012.
The 18-team AFL will this season move to a 10-team finals series with the introduction of a “Wildcard Round” in week one featuring the teams that finish seven to 10.
There are a multitude of permutations for a new-look finals series and the ARLC would have to conduct a deep dive to decide which fit is best – including retaining the current format, implementing the AFL version or a completely different option.
The AFL’s new system could be the easiest to follow but there are other options if the NRL doesn’t want to follow suit.
With the help of artificial intelligence, this columnist analysed a revised finals structure that would see the top 10 teams progress to a five-week, 11-game play-offs series.
The 10-team system would see the top two ranked teams receive a bye in the first week of the finals – a reward for their regular season performances which would also limit player resting in the last round.
Teams three to 10 would feature in four knockout games in the first week of the finals – 3 v 10, 4 v 9, 5 v 8 and 6 v 7 – with no second chance for the losers, creating hype, potential for underdog upsets and ensuring the stakes are high.
The finals series would then progress through qualifying and semi-finals over the next two weeks before the traditional preliminary finals in week four, which decide the grand finalists.
Either system would extend the finals series by a week and inject an extra two matches – generating significant fan interest, crowds, TV ratings and revenue.
A 10-team system would also ensure fans from more clubs remain highly-engaged with the competition for longer at the crunch time of the season.
The NRL has got off to a flying start on the back of its third Las Vegas season launch a fortnight ago.
Thursday night’s Broncos-Eels thriller attracted an average of 772,000 viewers on Channel 9, trumping the AFL’s traditional Carlton-Richmond season-opener (675,000) at the MCG.
The NRL also claimed a win on Friday night as an average of 693,000 tuned in to watch Alex Johnston’s record-breaking feat in the Roosters-Rabbitohs grudge match while the AFL attracted 557,000 on Channel 7 for the Essendon-Hawthorn showdown.
V’landys said the NRL was riding a wave of momentum and it was head office’s job to continue it.
“The ratings have never been bigger than the last two weeks,” he said.
“We are killing the AFL by hundreds of thousands. We beat them on Thursday and Friday night.
“On Thursday they had a pretty serious AFL match, but the Brisbane-Parramatta game was so far ahead it’s not funny.
“Again on Friday night, it was phenomenal. Even the Canberra-Warriors game (on Fox League) was up 10 per cent on last year.”
