A Costly Kick Off For NRL In PNG
An historic expansion of Australia’s National Rugby League (NRL) is underway that will see Papua New Guinea inducted as its newest team.
In a landmark deal, the Australian Federal Government will support the inclusion of PNG in the league through a $600 million project over the next 10 years. It will allow Australian NRL players to benefit from generous tax concessions by relocating to Port Moresby to play for PNG.
The breakdown of the funding includes a $60 million license fee paid to the other 17 prior to PNG’s first season and $290 million for football operations. The remaining $250 million is earmarked for education and social welfare programmes.
The inclusion of a PNG team in the NRL, which plays in Australia and New Zealand, represents a massive boon to the country and people of Papua New Guinea. It will also come with a higher level of scrutiny and accountability given taxpayer money is on the line.
There are also the geopolitical implications of the deal to consider, as the agreement contains a clause prohibiting PNG from increasing security relations with China that will tie PNG closer to Australia. The clause allows Australia to veto the deal entirely if PNG commits to any pact with China regarding concerns over security in the region.
Political Football
The Australian Rugby League Commission Ltd operates and controls the NRL and NRL Women’s (NRLW) competitions, making them one of Australia’s most powerful and influential lobbying groups. The ARL is headed by chairman Peter V’landys, who played a key role in securing the expansion bid.
Sport underpins nearly all aspects of Australian life, its reach extending to politics and policy making. The cultural prevalence of sport, particularly the national game of rugby league, positions it among the country’s most valuable industries both domestically and internationally. Millions of dollars are annually poured into developing the next generation of sporting heroes.
In 2023, the NRL reported a record profit of $700 million, up 18% on previous year-end earnings, resulting in an operating surplus of $58.2 million. The competition has secured lucrative revenue streams from sponsorship deals, ticket sales, merchandising and gambling.
Brisbane Broncos are the league’s most valuable club, worth $124 million. When the Redcliffe Dolphins entered the NRL in 2021, the club was valued at around $100 million and coupled with a leagues club that earns in excess of $30 million annually.
Given the prosperous financial position of the league and its clubs, why are Australian taxpayers footing the bill for the PNG expansion?
The project is being touted, rather successfully, as part of Australia’s ongoing aid commitments to PNG. Australia and PNG historically share close economic and political ties that are expected to be strengthened by this $600 million investment in PNG’s football future.
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, an avid rugby league fan, has been spruiking the PNG expansion, which has provided a convenient distraction from his ongoing failure to address the crippling cost-of-living crisis affecting millions of Australians.
“Rugby league is PNG’s national sport and PNG deserved a national team,” he said.
“The new team will belong to the people of PNG. It will call Port Moresby home. It will have millions of proud fans barracking for it for day one. Not just in PNG but I suspect many Australians will adopt the PNG team. The partnership will support young people in the Pacific … Fiji, Tonga and Samoa.”
Australia is already PNG’s largest development partner, contributing a projected $637.4 million of Official Development Assistance (ODA) in 2024-25. Australians will undoubtedly adopt the incumbent PNG team, given our love for the game.
But in the midst of a cost-of-living crisis that has crippled Australians across the country, spending the equivalent of our annual ODA investment on a game of football is yet another burden for the Australian taxpayer to bear.
With record profits, million-dollar clubs and the prosperous nature of their revenue streams, why is the ARL and NRL not contributing to this venture? Given the success of the expansion, the NRL is set to benefit immensely, as will its players through tax concessions.
Panem et circum, again and again
The NRL-PNG expansion presents as a classic case of bread and circuses served hot and ready by a government more invested in a game of football than the wellbeing of the people they serve. Rather than dealing with the real issues facing everyday Australians, it seems easier to satiate them with a convenient and entertaining distraction.
There is no question PNG deserve to be represented in the NRL, but it should not come at the expense of the Australian taxpayer.
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