ARLC Chair Peter V'landys may be done with rugby league if he pulls off a record TV deal and the subsequent May 28 league restart.
Amid talks last week with Channel 9 and Foxtel could reportedly lead to a $2.3 billion, seven-year TV deal, V'landys told The Sydney Morning Herald he feels he may be about to finally repay the game he loves.
"If I can get the game in a good financial position and started again, that will be my reward," V'landys said.
“I owe rugby league because it saved me from getting bashed up when I was a young migrant kid.
“I didn’t want to be ARLC chair. Being CEO is not on the cards. I’ve got no agendas. I don’t need to be chair or chief executive.
“Rugby league saved me as a migrant kid in Wollongong and if I can get the game up and going and in a good financial position, I will have repaid the debt.”
Many consider V'landys to have been the enduring public face of the NRL's response to the coronavirus pandemic. If he walks away, questions remain over the ability of the NRL to continue to forge a path through the crisis.
The future composition of the ARLC is uncertain following the recent resignations of Amanda Laing and Mark Coyne.
NRL CEO Todd Greenberg also resigned from the role last month after four years in the job.
V'landys defended the bonuses paid to Greenberg and his executive team in December last year, insisting that Andrew Abdo, who served as the NRL's chief commerical officer "drove the revenue increase" which justified the bonuses.
Abdo is now acting as interim CEO, but a high-quality full-time candidate becoming available is considered unlikely, per The Sydney Morning Herald.
