The NRL have been sent a major Las Vegas boost, with news breaking that the New Zealand Warriors and Canberra Raiders clash drew an enormous TV ratings uptick on the inaugural games.
Despite an increase in both atmosphere and attendance this year over the inaugural Las Vegas NRL matches in 2024, some journalists (usually from other sports) have attempted to suggest that the NRL's project to start the year has โlost its sheenโ.
This is a strange and largely incorrect narrative.
The attendance this year was 45,209, up from the 40,746 of 2024.
The atmosphere with the addition of the English and NZ Warriors fans was electric and saw a substantial boost from last year in terms of fan engagement. (Length of schedule is something still to be tweaked.)
Figures published today remarkably show that the Warriors vs Raiders game, the central game in the schedule for local US viewers given it's earlier start time, was watched by 370,000 Americans on Fox's free-to-air channel.
This represents a 600 per cent jump in interest from the 61,000 figure for US viewers at the peak last year when the Manly Sea Eagles, South Sydney Rabbitohs, Brisbane Broncos and Sydney Roosters became the first teams to play for premiership points outside of Australia or New Zealand.
Numbers are still yet to be published for the game between the Penrith Panthers and Cronulla Sharks which was played in a later time slot on the same day.
What this - both crowd and TV numbers - suggests is, despite the doom and gloom to the contrary, the game of rugby league and the NRL have a viable future in the USA โ a rather incredible result within two years of the NRL project in Las Vegas commencing.
Naysayers of the project in America have often floated the fact crowds are largely filled with travelling Australians, and there is little doubt last year's TV numbers were well short of what the NRL would have been hoping for.
But the increase for the Raiders and Warriors game almost certainly confirms the five-year contract signed with Las Vegas that was believed to have an option in it on both ends each year won't be cut short by the NRL.
It could also do wonders in terms of getting the final teams against the project over the line, with some believed to be still cautious over the idea of starting their season on the other side of the world.
The NRL want all 17 teams to travel at least once during the five-year deal, which will run until at least the end of 2028, with the St George Illawarra Dragons and Canterbury Bulldogs believed to be the early favourites when it comes to selecting the third group of teams who will travel in 2026.
Expansion of the game into global markets, particularly the US, is a priority for the NRL as they look to capitalise on enormous financial opportunities in major markets both on and off the field.
On the ground indicators suggest more local fans were in the crowd this year, and that the event may well become a success for the NRL in the coming years as they look to infiltrate one of the toughest sporting markets anywhere in the world.
The USA are cemented with their four key sports, basketball, baseball, gridiron and ice hockey, and the NRL would need time and enormous resources to break into the country on any scale.
The NRL will continue to adjust the product presented in the US after expanding to four games this year, with Australian Rugby League Commission chairman Peter V'Landys already flagging one game will be dropped next year, with the day simply too long following the addition of an English Super League game, and a women's Test match.
