Miami thrown up as another option v lv
Games to continue to be held in the states despite what stupid fans of other sports were claiming
Need to get the Las Vegas council / tourism board to increase the license fee from 2 million usd to 5 milllion usd which would ensure it makes very healthy profits in the Australian peso
ARL Commission boss Peter V’landys needs to buy his own plane.
The NRL’s preparations for the third instalment of their Las Vegas extravaganza hit turbulence on Tuesday when V’landys and several NRL powerbrokers had their Qantas flight aborted mid-air.
V’landys, NRL chief executive Andrew Abdo and Newcastle CEO Peter Parr were among a delegation en route to America ahead of Sunday’s premiership-opening double header at Allegiant Stadium.
The contingent flew out of Sydney airport, but drama struck when their flight suffered an emergency malfunction, said to be related to airconditioning issues.
As a result, the Vegas-bound flight was ordered to return to Sydney immediately for ground repairs.
V’landys trip to Las Vegas has hit some turbulence.
V’landys trip to Las Vegas has hit some turbulence.
It is understood all passengers returned safely with V’landys, Abdo and Parr among the throng which were made to wait in the plane on the runway while refuelling, before once again taking off to Sin City.
The NRL triumvirate spent approximately an hour in the air before the plane was redirected to Sydney for assessment by authorities.
But V’landys was able to see the funny side in the set-back, putting the blame on his cross-code rival.
“I knew we shouldn’t have employed AFL engineers,” the NRL boss said.
The setback won’t diminish V’landys’ enthusiasm for the NRL’s American incursion with Vegas 3.0 set to deliver a multimillion-dollar profit this season.
Critics of the concept claim Vegas lost millions in year one but V’landys says their US experiment is now well and truly in the black and poised to welcome more than 25,000 fans on Sunday.
“We made a profit last year and the concept is bigger and better than I ever imagined,” he said.
“We’ve got 15,000 Aussies going to Vegas and 10,000 English fans this year - I would have been happy to get 3000 or 4000 in the first year.
The NRL’s Vegas openers have become a staple. Picture Todd Martyn-Jones
The NRL’s Vegas openers have become a staple. Picture Todd Martyn-Jones
“The interest has been phenomenal.
“We have increased the sales of watch NRL in America, now it’s an app that you buy for $160 and you subscribe to it for 12 months, you get all the panel shows, all the games and sales have increased dramatically.
“You have to have ambition. We could sit back and do nothing because the game is in the best place it’s ever been in its history, it’s got the most eyeballs it’s ever had.
“But the Nevada government loves having rugby league in Vegas and we’d like to extend our deal with Vegas.
“It (Vegas) is a major bucket list item ... it promotes rugby league to the maximum and that’s what it’s all about.”
MIAMI DREAMS FOR NRL AFTER VEGAS SUCCESS
- Peter Badel
ARL Commission boss Peter V’landys says rugby league will stay in America for 2029 and beyond as the NRL looks to capitalise on their Las Vegas extravaganza by expanding to Miami.
The third edition of Vegas will kick-off this Sunday when the Cowboys face the Knights before the Dragons and Bulldogs square off in a Sin City double header at Allegiant Stadium.
Now the NRL is ramping-up plans to expand its footprint in the American market, with V’landys revealing talks are underway to cement rugby league in the US.
V’landys has the support of Rabbitohs CEO Blake Solly and South Sydney coach Wayne Bennett, who urged the NRL not to “abandon” rugby league’s bold incursion into the Land of Opportunity.
The NRL’s five-year Vegas deal at Allegiant Stadium expires at the end of 2028 and the ARLC is determined to maintain a presence in a US market that first hosted State of Origin in California 40 years ago.
V’landys, speaking to Code Sports on Tuesday as he left Australia bound for Vegas, confirmed he is investigating taking NRL games to Miami.
The state of Florida, world renowned for its beach resorts and amusement parks, was once home to hit 1980s TV series Miami Vice and now it could be the scene of rugby league’s international growth.
“America is going to remain at all times on our calendar,” the ARLC chair said.
“We aren’t finished with America.
“We will either stay in Vegas or we might go to Miami.
“There’s no doubt Vegas has been so successful but Miami is another place we are looking at.
“It’s an area that people would want to go to, we think our fans would see it as a bucket list and Miami is a great place in America.”
Bennett, who coached Queensland in the Origin exhibition clash in Los Angeles in 1987, urged V’landys to keep growing the game in America.
“Peter and the NRL have done a great job with their vision for the game,” Bennett said.
“We have five years in Vegas and I’m not sure what the future is after that, but the NRL has invested time and effort into the US.
“We have to stick at it, we have to put money into it.
“We have a great game and I have no doubt Americans will love it. But we have to stay there longer than five years.
“America is a massive market. It will take a long time but I think we can have long-term benefits by playing the game in America.
“Let’s not abandon the idea. Let’s keep going.”
V’landys also confirmed the NRL has opened talks with the Nevada government to explore an extension and a potential 10-year presence in Vegas.
NRL Vegas has been a money-spinner for local authorities with millions being outlaid by Australian and English league fans on travel, accommodation a visitor spending in the gaming capital.
“We’d like to extend our deal with Vegas,” he said.
“Vegas is definitely our preferred option and the Nevada government have been magnificent.
“They are a great partner and they want us to stay on longer than five years.
“All the teams indicate they want to go back to Vegas which is pleasing. We’re only into the third year, but after this year’s event, we’ll be in a better position to assess things.
“It (Vegas) is a major bucket list item ... it promotes rugby league to the maximum and that’s what it’s all about.
“We have to have ambition.”
Solly, one of the NRL’s longest-serving chief executives, said San Diego could be another target market for the NRL after the California city hosted an All Blacks-Fiji rugby Test in 2024.
“At some stage the game should try somewhere other than Las Vegas,” he said.
“The All Blacks played in San Diego in 2024 and it was a 33,000 sellout at the Snapdragon Stadium.
“In the first year of Vegas, we trained in San Diego.
“Vegas has been a huge success and there is no denying that, but there are other cities in the US like San Diego or Nashville that would be very attractive to the clubs and their fans alike.”
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