Sad News: Penrith Panthers Manager Ivan Cleary involved in a car crash today….
NRL CEO Andrew Abdo has revealed that the addition of a women’s Test between Australia and England and a Super League fixture at Vegas 2025 is part of a long-term strategy to grow the game globally.
And, Abdo said, the inclusion of the four NRL teams – the Panthers, Sharks, Raiders and Warriors – will help take the game to new markets and could lead to links with famous NFL and NBA franchises.
The Panthers and Sharks will meet in a Sydney derby, with the Raiders and Warriors being the other NRL match-up in an historic quadruple header featuring Super League giants Wigan and Warrington and a women’s Test between Australia and England.
“This is the sequel, and we wanted to make sure that the sequel is bigger and better, so we have four fixtures – not two – and we thought very carefully and worked with all of the clubs to get this configuration right,” Abdo said.
“The exciting thing is we’re offering four new clubs, and their fan bases and their members, an opportunity to experience what we got to experience in 2024, which was a magnificent event.
“Now we’re adding a women’s international with the Jillaroos against England, plus a Super League fixture.
“I’m not aware of any previous occasion where we’ve had premiership points up for grabs in Super League and in the NRL at the same time, so we’re going to have rugby league fans from all over the world coming to see something unique.”
The matches are scheduled so that viewers in England can watch Wigan and Warrington play on Saturday night, while the NRL fixtures and Jillaroos Test will be in Sunday afternoon timeslots for Australian and New Zealand audiences.
