Four-time defending NRL premiers the Penrith Panthers have revealed Panthers Group CEO Brian Fletcher has decided to retire.
His retirement will be in the first quarter of 2026, giving the reigning premiers, who are struggling immensely in 2026, about six months to replace him.
โOn behalf of the Panthers Group board, I want to sincerely thank Brian for his tireless service to the Panthers,โ Panthers Group Chairman Peter Graham said in a statement confirming the decision for Fletcher to retire.
โBrian's leadership over the past 10 years has helped build a successful organisation. We are grateful for everything he has done to position the club for long-term strength.โ
Fletcher has been in his role at the Panthers for the last 15 years, and was instrumental in helping the club achieve their incredible run of success over the last half a decade.
That started well before that though, with Fletcher being a driving force behind the club's centre of excellence which has churned out a home grown talent program that built the nucleus of the side who have played five straight grand finals
Now at the age of 71 though, he has elected to retire and told News Corp it was the correct decision.
โYou often see people in jobs like mine where you're getting well paid that can stay around too long," he told the publication.
"I think it's a perfect time to retire. All the clubs are trading well. We've finished building the Pullman Hotel and the 1000-seat convention centre. We have some very talented young people in the organisation. They deserve a crack at it now.โ
Panthers Group oversee the rugby league program, as well as all other community initiatives at the club, while Matt Cameron will stay on as CEO of the Panthers Rugby League Club.
The club said they will begin a formal process to appoint a new CEO of the Panthers group.
