PNG to join NRL in 2028
12th December 2024
In a landmark, world first sports diplomacy deal, the Australian Rugby League Commission (ARLC) has confirmed an agreement with the Australian Government to fund a 10-year Pacific Rugby League Partnership. The Pacific Pacific Rugby League Partnership will support investment into grassroots, pathways and elite rugby league across Papua New Guinea, Tonga, Samoa and Fiji. It will also support the introduction of a PNG-based NRL side as part of a future expanded NRL Telstra Premiership.
ARLC Chairman Peter V’landys AM said the deal was a watershed moment for rugby league and the Pacific region. "This is an historic step for Rugby League, Australia, PNG and the entire Pacific," Mr V’landys said. "Rugby league is the number one sport in the Pacific. This new Club will solidify Rugby league’s role as the unifying language of our region."
V’landys said the funding would be directed into programs that would transform lives and communities across the Pacific. "Roughly half the funding in this historic agreement with the Federal Government will go to grassroots football and community programs in PNG. It will also flow across the Pacific, including to Fiji, Tonga and Samoa. The Pacific Rugby League Partnership will help improve school retention, foster national cohesion, and provide opportunities for young people to be their best selves. We know when rugby league is on the curriculum, kids go to school – and that changes lives. Rugby league isn’t just sport, it’s a social force for good – a way to improve lives and build stronger communities.
"The new PNG team provides the NRL with a new 10 million+ audience many who will go from being causal fans into engaged fans. Just as importantly the pathways investments will provide many new and exciting players to the game. I thank Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, PNG Prime Minister James Marape, Pat Conroy and their respective governments for having the vision to understand rugby league’s unique capacity to bind and build communities."
The incredible story of the journey of rugby league in Papua New Guinea has received its ultimate end-result with the announcement that the country will join the National Rugby League in 2028. The decision is an amazing boost not only for the people of PNG, but also the Pacific Nations as a whole. Months of speculation were today confirmed with Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Papua New Guinea Prime Minister James Marape standing together in Sydney to announce the news that will thrill a nation of people where rugby league is the national sport and unites the country.
A tremendous amount of work has taken place behind the scenes to make this decision possible. With an incredible talent pool of male and female players throughout the country a structure needed to be put in place to support the development of these players. NRL Bid CEO Andrew Hill and Chairman Wapu Sonk, were tasked with the job of putting the pieces in place that would create a structure that would be the envy of any club in the NRL. This started with the appointment of the highly credentialled Joe Grima to head up the pathways program.
An Academy program was created to nurture the best 15, 17 and 19 year-old players and to expand the geographical reach to create training centres throughout the country. An annual tournament was then created to allow the best players in the country to showcase their skills on a national platform that was televised for the first time. The success of the new structure was then highlighted when the Junior Kumuls were able to draw 22-all with the Australian Schoolboys side in Port Moresby in October, showcasing the major steps forward that had taken place in the skills levels and fitness of the players. With the structures and programs now in place, and can move to creating a franchise that can thrive in the NRL.
NRL Bid CEO Andrew Hill was delighted that an enormous amount of hard work by many people had led to this point. "Rugby League in PNG is extremely thankful to both the Papua New Guinea and Australian Governments. There is no doubt that their support was a game changer," he said. "We are also indebted to Peter V’Landys, Andrew Abdo and the ARLC for their vision and commitment to PNG and the Pacific. PNG is in the incredible position of being the only country in the world where rugby league is the national game. It brings together people from all backgrounds and locations under one banner. When you have a population that can unite behind one cause, it is incredibly powerful, and we have the potential to create the largest fan base of any other current NRL team."
NRL Bid Chairman Wapu Sonk was equally as effusive about what the news would mean to the people of PNG. "We can’t wait for the world to see the beauty of this great country and everything that it has to offer. It is a chance for our country to showcase itself to the world through a sport that unites the nation. This is now the starting point for a lot of hard work. There is much to do to make sure that we are ready to go in 2028, but I am confident that when we run out for our first match, we will be ready and the whole country will be behind us."
Ref - NRL [Viewed 13 Dec 2024] / NRL [Viewed 3 Dec 2024] / FN-2