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The try is great but there are others that where more impressive especially the Morris try against the Sharks now that was spectacular.
Over the next 5 years, the goal should really be increasing awareness of the NRL in America and across the globe.. 21 million is good nudge in the right direction.
Nice kit!
I like this stat:Figures show NRL’s Las Vegas gamble may just come up trumps
The numbers are in after the NRL’s historic foray into Sin City, and they suggest the bold gamble could just pay off.www.smh.com.au
Figures show NRL’s Las Vegas gamble may just come up trumps
The numbers are in after the NRL’s historic foray into Sin City, and they suggest the bold gamble could just pay off.
Figures show NRL’s Las Vegas gamble may just come up trumps
By Adrian Proszenko
March 24, 2024 — 5.00am
State of Origin-style television ratings at home, more than 100 separate pieces of media coverage in the United States and more than 10,000 Las Vegas-branded merchandise items sold in a week.
The numbers are in after the NRL’s historic foray into Sin City, and they suggest the bold gamble may have paid off. The governing body has compiled all the metrics from the historic double-header, which marked the first time that a competition game has been staged outside Australia and New Zealand.
It was the first of a five-year commitment to the concept, and the initial figures suggest the idea is at least worth persevering with. The combined Australian television audience of 4.11 million for both matches is a number normally reserved for marquee Origin fixtures.
The Roosters’ win over the Broncos not only attracted the highest viewership for a season opener on record, surpassing the next best by 10.5 per cent, but was also the most watched regular-season game in history. It beat the next best, the first match after the COVID shutdown in 2020, by 5.7 per cent.
Such was the interest that the combined figures made it the highest-rating Sunday 4pm match of all time, including finals, surpassing the previous mark by 6.5 per cent. Both matches broke records for Fox Sports, including play-off encounters.
The ratings figures achieved in the US are comparable with those for Major League Soccer in that country. There was an average of 61,000 viewers for Manly’s win over South Sydney, despite an overtime college basketball match delaying the coverage and forcing the NRL to a much lower-rating Fox Sports channel. A total of 44,000 Americans tuned in to watch the Roosters play the Broncos, despite it kicking off after 12.30am on the east coast, where the majority of the population lives.
For further context, a Utah Jazz clash against Miami Heat on NBA TV drew 200,000. The college basketball match that ran overtime leading into the NRL matches drew 162,000 viewers.
The Vegas experiment also translated into significant interest in social media, with 9.1 million total video views for “NRL in Las Vegas” content published since August 2023.
For further context, a Utah Jazz clash against Miami Heat on NBA TV drew 200,000. The college basketball match that ran overtime leading into the NRL matches drew 162,000 viewers.
The Vegas experiment also translated into significant interest in social media, with 9.1 million total video views for “NRL in Las Vegas” content published since August 2023.
“The amount of travelling fans made the experience very special and the clubs and players put on some great football.
“While the statistics are encouraging, there is significant room for growth and improvement.
“This is only year one of our US strategy. We are committed to building a sustainable presence in a competitive but large US market over time.”
One of the aims of the initiative was to drive subscriptions to the Watch NRL app. There were 1749 new NRL accounts created in the US between August and March. While this appears to be a modest increase, that figure was up 167 per cent on 2022-2023. Traffic to the official website also spiked: there were 1,045,270 unique users on NRL.com and the NRL App (up 43 per cent) in the 24-hour period covering March 2 (US)-March 3 (Australia). Of those, 40,870 unique users were from the US, a 185 per cent increase on the opening round of last year.
The NRL staged 21 events in Vegas, hosting 3670 guests. The most memorable was the season launch in Old Vegas. An estimated crowd of 5000 attended the launch.
Footy fans picked up more than 10,000 units of branded Vegas merchandise, with the US-branded Steeden football the most popular.
The official attendance of 40,746, despite wind gusts exceeding 100km/h on game day, is the largest for rugby league on American soil. By comparison, 39,720 watched the All Blacks play the USA in a rugby union Test in 2021 near Washington. The highest crowd for a US Major League Rugby match is 11,427.
Tickets were purchased for the Las Vegas double-header in 31 countries throughout the world.
The event was covered by some of the US media’s biggest names, including New York Post, Associated Press, Forbes, Fox News, Fox Sports, The Washington Post, ESPN and ABC.
The NRL maintains there is room for improvement. One of the big challenges is to partner with a wagering operator in a bid to cash in on the explosion in legalised betting in the United States. There is also a desire to build the American fan base by being broadcast more frequently on key platforms.
“Outside of the event itself, we are working to keep growing the event week and developing long-term relationships with partners which will attract new fans to our sport,” Abdo said.
“Next year’s Las Vegas Round will be even bolder and bigger and the interest for 2025 has already been quite remarkable.”
Who are the other 3 though? C’mon Chammas spill
Lock in storm and warriors lol
Prob Cowboys or Raiders because of the NFL friendly names
Dolphins, Titans, Bears (lol) Steelers!Prob Cowboys or Raiders because of the NFL friendly names
Soon as they are named the Perffff AFL lover will be deathriding as much as he can .
