After a one-year hiatus, the NRL All Stars match will make its return to the pre-season in 2022, and in a new location.
The NRL have made no secret of their desire for the match to continue as a focal point of the pre-season, even managing to play it in 2021 despite the reduced nature of the pre-season after the coronavirus enforced shutdown of the 2020 season saw NRL played well into the Spring.
The game has previously been held predominantly on the Gold Coast, but has also had one-off appearances in Melbourne, Newcastle, Townsville and Sydney.
The match, which was previously held as the Indigenous team against an NRL or world team, was relaunched with great success under the current model, and after a season which starved fans of action in Sydney, that's exactly where the NRL are planning to play the 2022 instalment.
The Daily Telegraph report that the clash will be played on Saturday, February 12, making it the first official game of the pre-season (a week before clubs will begin official trials), with it to be held in Sydney at CommBank Stadium.
The Parramatta venue has quickly risen as the best NRL venue in the city, and while the new Sydney Football Stadium is likely to challenge it, the Moore Park venue won't be open until the end of the season.
It's understood the NRL are confident of a sell out crowd for the pre-season fixture.
The last clash, in 2020, saw the teams tie at ten points a piece in Townsville, while the previous two encounters between the Indigenous and Maori teams were split at one a piece.
The All-Stars match is one of the key events of the pre-season, alongside the NRL Nines.
It's unclear if they will be able to return for the 2022 season at this stage however, with the event receiving generally mixed reviews from clubs, with some ensuring plenty of stars don't make the trip.
The last installment of the Nines was in 2020 in Perth, with the North Queensland Cowboys taking home the title, before it was cancelled in 2021 due to the shortened pre-season.
