Papua New Guinea NRL side...

[dealwithit]

1 hour ago, Sports Prophet said:

PNG is such a big step. There is so much to prepare for a new club entry.

I wonder if the NRL have also secured the waiver from the ATO over the 183 day rule correctly highlighted by @Anita Bath.

Tax concessions aside, I am still unconvinced the club can entice enough quality players and I am further unconvinced the club is sustainable beyond the government’s original pledge.

NRL clubs receive an annual grant well exceeding the salary cap, and all travel is paid by the NRL. So what else is really needed to make it any more sustainable than any other team? Living quarters in a gated community? I guess the $600M will go cover the initial capex required. So what else? 
You have the hunters in the qld cup, a competition arguable as strong as super league. You have the PNGNRL that is also strong. So there’s a player pathway. There’s thousands of Aussie expats in POM living in gated communities. Why would NRL players be any different? 

[Damien]

7 hours ago, dealwithit said:

NRL clubs receive an annual grant well exceeding the salary cap, and all travel is paid by the NRL. So what else is really needed to make it any more sustainable than any other team? Living quarters in a gated community? I guess the $600M will go cover the initial capex required. So what else? 
You have the hunters in the qld cup, a competition arguable as strong as super league. You have the PNGNRL that is also strong. So there’s a player pathway. There’s thousands of Aussie expats in POM living in gated communities. Why would NRL players be any different? 

Arguable as in completely wrong.

[Adelaide Tiger]

On 16/08/2024 at 15:36, Anita Bath said:

I am sure the taxpayers of australia will love that.

I mean if we are going to spend taxpayers money on  a new NRL team why not Adelaide.

Well the chinese are not looking to take over Adelaide I suppose.

As a pomme immigrant whose UK superannuation is taxed by the ATO while australian super is tax free its a great way of spending what I put aside for my retirement.

Its still a country unable to stand on its own two feet and subsidised by the UK.

As a permanent resident of Australia - I had to undertake the compulsory lobotomy of course - and a tax payer living in Adelaide I think the $600m towards RL in PNG is a fantastic idea.

 

[The Rocket]

10 years and they are on their own. Ought to be enough.

PVL and Albo’s $60m Christmas gift to NRL clubs

The expansion into Papua New Guinea hasn’t officially been announced, but part of the Federal Government’s $600m investment is already set to be gifted to NRL clubs by Christmas.
This masthead can reveal the NRL’s 17 clubs will share in an unprecedented expansion bonanza as the Federal Government and the ARLC move a step closer to adding Papua New Guinea to the big league.

Australia’s National Security Committee of Cabinet has ratified a $600 million funding proposal – clearing the path for PNG to formally clinch an NRL licence within a month.
Under a historic Pacific agreement, the existing 17 NRL clubs will be given a $60 million sweetener – about $3.5m per franchise – as part of a landmark PNG licence fee that will be shared among the current teams.

Well-placed sources say Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and V’landys will shake hands on the PNG deal in mid-September in the lead up to the NRL finals.
 

L to R: Prime Minister Anthony Albanese chats and ARL Chair Peter V’landys are set to deliver a windfall to NRL clubs. Picture: NewsWire / John Appleyard

That will be a preamble to the parties announcing the NRL’s next wave of expansion, with the Western Bears to enter the big league in 2027, followed by PNG 12 months later.
This masthead can reveal the ARLC is already receiving some funds from the Federal government, who have begun diverting money into the NRL’s coffers to prepare for the historic launch of PNG in 2028.

But the clubs will also be major benefactors of rugby league’s ambitious Pacific growth project.

Of the $600m proposal, the Federal government has agreed to an upfront licence fee of $60 million, the proceeds of which will be paid directly to the 17 clubs to assuage fears they could suffer financially from fresh expansion.

The code’s record $1.347 billion Collective Bargaining Agreement last season ensured annual club grants increased to around $18 million this year.
With the extra funds from the one-off PNG licence fee the 17 NRL clubs will receive a total of around $21.5 million each, an extraordinary surplus given the code’s salary cap this season is $12.5m.

Merry Christmas, NRL clubs.
 

Wests Tigers CEO Shane Richardson.

Wests Tigers boss Shane Richardson, the former NRL strategy chief who first investigated expansion in 2015, said the $60m licence fee would be a huge financial coup for the clubs.

“The extra money would be invaluable,” he said.

“I’m not sure what the exact plan is at this stage, but if they are going to give $60 million to the clubs, yes, that’s fantastic.”

Albanese believes an 18th PNG franchise can have educational benefits for the region, bolstered by the use of ‘soft diplomacy’ via a government-financed sporting team to keep China at bay in the Pacific.

It is understood the estimated $600m investment is not solely for a new NRL team, but part of a wider social, economic and educational blueprint to strengthen a nation of 10 million where rugby league is the No. 1 sport.

Once the $60m is distributed to the clubs, that will leave $540m of government funding to be allocated to setting up – and sustaining – PNG as the NRL’s 19th team.

During high-powered negotiations, the NRL has been told $29m per year will be given to the football arm of the PNG franchise for a period of 10 years – a total of $290m.

The remaining $250 million will be allocated to social welfare and education programs in PNG.

The Federal government has made it clear to the NRL that the PNG investment is for a 10-year term only.

Once the deal expires in 2038, the Federal government will walk away from the PNG project and not provide another cent, confident the NRL’s 19th team will be self-sufficient after a decade’s existence.

In an exclusive interview with this masthead recently, Albanese stressed the Federal government’s funding would go beyond just a PNG football team.

“The aim would be for any government funding to be aimed at economic development in schools. It’s not just for the NRL team and to pay Alex Johnston (Souths winger) to play for PNG,” Albanese said.
 

PNG and South Sydney star Alex Johnston. Picture: Matt King/Getty Images

“This is a game changer for the relationship with Papua New Guinea.

“We’re definitely behind the NRL bid and, importantly, Prime Minister (James) Murape in PNG is very much behind an NRL team.

“To have a PNG NRL team, we would need to get the pathway and infrastructure right.

“It’s an important part of economic development and getting young people engaged in PNG.

“This is not just about sport in itself, it’s building people-to-people relations and economic development for PNG, that’s the way the government sees it.

“I was in PNG in January and you see kids and adults all wearing State of Origin jumpers and jumpers of NRL clubs.

“The support there is fanatical.”

Richardson backed V’landys’ vision for a 20-team competition.

“We would love to see an expansion blueprint because there’s no doubt 20 teams could work,” Richardson said.

“People say we haven’t got the players, but we have the players if we have a bigger view of what the game is about.

“We are in a position now to become the dominant code in Australia and across the board.

“There is no doubt we can go to 20 teams, but let’s sit down now and look at the financial side of it.

“What are the dollars and cents of it all and what is television willing to pay for a 20-team league.”

 

 

 

[dealwithit]

53 minutes ago, Damien said:

Arguable as in completely wrong.

It’s subjective. You can have your opinion of course. Quite a few former QLD and NSW cup players running around in super league. 

[Keith989]

1 hour ago, dealwithit said:

It’s subjective. You can have your opinion of course. Quite a few former QLD and NSW cup players running around in super league. 

They step up a level to play super league. 

[dealwithit]

28 minutes ago, Keith989 said:

They step up a level to play super league. 

Or laterally

[Damien]

2 hours ago, dealwithit said:

It’s subjective. You can have your opinion of course. Quite a few former QLD and NSW cup players running around in super league. 

Quite a few running about the NRL too

[Sports Prophet]

23 hours ago, dealwithit said:

You have the hunters in the qld cup, a competition arguable as strong as super league. You have the PNGNRL that is also strong. So there’s a player pathway. There’s thousands of Aussie expats in POM living in gated communities. Why would NRL players be any different? 

You do know that NRL clubs derive a large amount of revenue outside of tv money right? That money isn’t “cream” which goes into the pockets of administrators.

As it happens, last time I looked, there were only three or four NRL clubs which had tv money as > 50% of their income. So there is a lot more needed than just the NRL grant for a club to operate.

As to gated communities being an acceptable thing. I don’t imagine many of those thousands are families. I suspect the only players interested in getting across will be single and looking for an NRL lifeline.

[Sports Prophet]

23 hours ago, The Rocket said:

The NRL see the PNG team as a long-term project and there is no rush for that team to be a success, the Gov`t money will probably be guaranteed for a decade and even if after that a large chunk of the excess funding dries up they will still get their 17m NRL grant and there is a multitude of multi-national companies in that country that won`t want to see that team falter.

Crucially this gives PNG about 10 years to get their systems right and tap into the huge potential playing pool in that country, and once they get that sorted player recruitment will be solved, maybe solved for a lot of other teams as well !  Work has already started and I believe $5m a year is already being spent on pathways, $5m goes a long way in New Guinea.

The NRL aren`t doing this on a whim, they know that bringing a team from a third country into the NRL will be a very good look and only increase the NRL`s claim to be the number one sport in Australasia.

Ten years should be enough to get it sustainable with predominantly local players. 

Number 1 sport in Australasia… it’s definitely a possibility within the next ten years.

[Anita Bath]

On 17/08/2024 at 10:02, dealwithit said:

NRL clubs receive an annual grant well exceeding the salary cap, and all travel is paid by the NRL. So what else is really needed to make it any more sustainable than any other team? Living quarters in a gated community? I guess the $600M will go cover the initial capex required. So what else? 
You have the hunters in the qld cup, a competition arguable as strong as super league. You have the PNGNRL that is also strong. So there’s a player pathway. There’s thousands of Aussie expats in POM living in gated communities. Why would NRL players be any different? 

The Queensland cup is nowhere near as strong as super league. 

[dealwithit]

12 hours ago, Sports Prophet said:

You do know that NRL clubs derive a large amount of revenue outside of tv money right? That money isn’t “cream” which goes into the pockets of administrators.

As it happens, last time I looked, there were only three or four NRL clubs which had tv money as > 50% of their income. So there is a lot more needed than just the NRL grant for a club to operate.

As to gated communities being an acceptable thing. I don’t imagine many of those thousands are families. I suspect the only players interested in getting across will be single and looking for an NRL lifeline.

Wow, thank you kind man for explaining how business works. I couldn’t have understood it without your wisdom. 
 

[dealwithit]

10 hours ago, Anita Bath said:

The Queensland cup is nowhere near as strong as super league. 

From watching both comps this season I’d say teams like Pride and Norths demonstrate the gap isn’t as wide as you might like to think. Again, it’s subjective and I respect your opinion. Regardless, I think the Hunters are a solid pathway to a PNG NRL team. 

[Anita Bath]

10 hours ago, dealwithit said:

From watching both comps this season I’d say teams like Pride and Norths demonstrate the gap isn’t as wide as you might like to think. Again, it’s subjective and I respect your opinion. Regardless, I think the Hunters are a solid pathway to a PNG NRL team. 

Yes they look good playing the opposition they face…..they dont play teams like Wigan, Saints, Warrington every other week.

[Sports Prophet]

On 17/08/2024 at 08:02, dealwithit said:

NRL clubs receive an annual grant well exceeding the salary cap, and all travel is paid by the NRL. So what else is really needed to make it any more sustainable than any other team?

 

11 hours ago, dealwithit said:

Wow, thank you kind man for explaining how business works. I couldn’t have understood it without your wisdom. 

No need to be condescending. All I did was answer your question.

If you already knew everything I said, then why did you ask such a silly question in the first place? 

[dealwithit]

On 19/08/2024 at 08:57, Sports Prophet said:

 

No need to be condescending. All I did was answer your question.

If you already knew everything I said, then why did you ask such a silly question in the first place? 

I thought I must be missing something preventing PNG from being sustainable. 

[unapologetic pedant]

After finishing 5th on the ladder, PNG Hunters will face Wynnum-Manly in Port Moresby on Saturday. This will be their first QLD Premiership final since 2017 when they were minor and major premiers.

Playing characteristically exciting stuff with ball in hand. Still conceding close-range tries, smaller players bulldozed by a powerful unit one-out from the ruck.

[fenster]

3 hours ago, unapologetic pedant said:

After finishing 5th on the ladder, PNG Hunters will face Wynnum-Manly in Port Moresby on Saturday. This will be their first QLD Premiership final since 2017 when they were minor and major premiers.

Playing characteristically exciting stuff with ball in hand. Still conceding close-range tries, smaller players bulldozed by a powerful unit one-out from the ruck.

The hunters have some great players like fullback sanny wabo, centre Alex max, prop valentine Richard and hooker Judah rimbu who could and should be playing at a higher level be it super league or even NRL.

[Damien]

Always great to see the wealth of support for Rugby League in PNG:

 

[dealwithit]

Hunters went down fighting against Norths in week 2 of the finals. 

[Damien]

 

 

[eal]

I predict an unhappy ending for any PNG NRL team. I hope I'm wrong but I really think it is a bad idea to have a team based in Port Moresby.

[Londonbornirishbred]

In a parallel universe, if the British Government gave £600,000,000 to Superleague over 10 years and the existing sides were to receive £4,000,000 each with London Broncos getting the rest, I suspect the internet would melt.

In all seriousnous, I hope it goes well for the Bears and then PNG. Thatnsaid, whilst I will be happy to visit Perth, I think I'll give Port M a swerve.

 

[Henson Park Old Firm]

Time to replace the Catalan Dragons with a team from Kabul 

[Damien]

Some more information here with information on the proposed figures, which include a nice little sweetener for existing NRL clubs:

The ARLC are reportedly pleased with the government’s funding, which will see the PNG outfit be backed by he Australian government until 2037.

The Pacific NRL side will reportedly be announced after the grand final, with a celebration to take place during Australian PM XIII’s clash with PNG in Port Moresby.

PNG won’t be the only team to receive funding, with a $60 million license fee to be shared across the 17 clubs in the competition ahead of their entry.

Every franchise will reportedly pocked around $3.5 million, and Peter V’landys is reportedly currently visiting each club to explain his plans for expansion in the coming years.

That leaves $540 million, which will reportedly be allocated to setting up and keeping the PNG franchise afloat as it begins like in the NRL.

$290 million will be spent on football operations, while the remaining $250 million will reportedly be spent on education and social welfare in the Pacific nation.

Port Moresby will be the headquarters of the new franchise, with a ‘mini-city’ built for rugby league purposes to be built to house the players and their families.

https://www.foxsports.com.au/nrl/nrl-premiership/nrl-2024-papua-new-guinea-nrl-franchise-confirmed-600-million-federal-government-funding-nrl-expansion-news-videos-highlights/news-story/d667a10dac4a0359aa263d2ee6f6e963