The NRL has received a critical blow after not being able to strike a deal for pre-game entertainment at the Grand Final on Sunday week.

Negotiations with Aussie artist Tones and I fell through, meaning there is no one to headline before the big dance gets underway.

Years gone by, the NRL have gotten The Kid LAROI. and Teddy Swims, internationally respected artists, which helped bring in a casual crowd of viewers.

Although the Sydney Morning Herald has revealed there was a disagreement with both parties this year, with the NRL requesting Tones and I to play her smash hit Dance Monkey, which she rejected, leaving the plans on the cutting room floor.

It is understood Nine, who hold the exclusive broadcasting rights to the Grand Final spectacle, is furious.

They believe a piece of pre-match entertainment is a pivotal way to bring in further viewers, which has now been scrapped.

It means the NRL has a fair chunk of spare cash, with ARLC Chair Peter V'landys revealing he will use the money meant for Tones and I and give it back to grassroots footy.

“Rather than giving a performer $90,000 a minute, we would prefer to give it to grassroots,” V'landys told SMH on Tuesday.
“We believe that the entertainment is our game. It's more the media that put themselves into a frenzy who we get as a performer.
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PERTH, AUSTRALIA - MAY 08: Peter V'landys (Australian Rugby League Commission Chairman) addresses the media during an NRL Perth Bears Announcement press conference at HBF Park on May 08, 2025 in Perth, Australia. (Photo by Paul Kane/Getty Images)
"But when you look at it realistically for 11 minutes, it's not worth it. People will come to the game with or without it. We believe the money is better spent on junior rugby league.”
The AFL has secured pop superstar Kylie Minogue for this year's Grand Final in Melbourne.

It is a colossal blow to the 13-man code, which often feeds into the rivalry with their neighbouring Australian sport, with V'landys taking a cheeky jab at the AFL last year for securing US rapper Snoop Dogg when they called upon Teddy Swims.

"We saw what the FLA (AFL) got - what's he called, Labrador or poodle?" V'landys joked on Nine's Today in September last year.

"All I know is it's a dog act. We had to get better than that, and we actually got a vocalist.

"This bloke (Teddy Swims) can actually sing. He's a global act, he's got billions of downloads, and he's also gonna promote the NRL in America. He's just a class act and very popular."

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V'Landys will work co-operatively with the NSWRL to commit to donating to the junior rugby league across the area.

“We've been toying with this idea for two years, and we've done it,” he said.

“What's important to me is how good our game is, that it attracts an audience on its own. It doesn't need a musical act.

“I'd prefer to spend [the money] on getting 2,000 or 3,000 kids who couldn't afford to play rugby league to be able to play rugby league now. We'll give it to kids who are underprivileged and can't afford to play the game with their mates. I think that's a better use of the money than $90,000 a minute for an artist.”

Pre-match entertainment holds significance to many in the NRL space, particularly Tina Turner's iconic 1993 performance, where she featured heavily throughout the 90s rugby league media landscape with her smash-hit The Best.

It has been widely considered synonymous with rugby league during that era and regarded as the best pre-game entertainment in Australian sporting history.