WCC in doubt?

[Damien]

11 minutes ago, phiggins said:

No issue at all with Wigan and Warrington. But I think when clubs are doing their own thing like this, then it will cause issues with the schedules. I also think it's a poor look on RL Commercial that Vegas has been done without their input.

But the RFL don't do themselves any favours either. I'm amazed that they can add a week to the start of the season, to have SL clubs enter the cup a round early, but they can't free up a weekend for the WCC, instead hoping the SL champions and whoever they are scheduled to play in round 2 get knocked out of the challenge cup early.

There is no issue at all though. Wigan and Warrington played SL fixtures on the same weekend as Vegas this year. They will again next year, just in Vegas.

[phiggins]

1 minute ago, Damien said:

There is no issue at all though. Wigan and Warrington played SL fixtures on the same weekend as Vegas this year. They will again next year, just in Vegas.

But the fact that they are in Vegas the week after the WCC is earmarked is part of the reason the WCC is in doubt. They won't travel to Aus the week before, and Penrith won't travel to the UK the week before they go to Vegas. 

If Warrington and Wigan weren't going to Vegas, the WCC would be getting scheduled to be hosted in Aus.

[John m]

https://www.nine.com.au/sport/nrl/judiciary-2024-live-updates-nelson-asofa-solomona-results-latest-news-grand-final-decision-20240930-p5kepv.html

[Henson Park Old Firm]

Wigan regardless will want to play the WCC..... LL, CC, SL champions... they would want to win the Quaddy

[Damien]

21 minutes ago, phiggins said:

But the fact that they are in Vegas the week after the WCC is earmarked is part of the reason the WCC is in doubt. They won't travel to Aus the week before, and Penrith won't travel to the UK the week before they go to Vegas. 

If Warrington and Wigan weren't going to Vegas, the WCC would be getting scheduled to be hosted in Aus.

It's a Love Rugby league Article. I have absolutely no doubt that any issues will come from the NRL side and not SL.

Australia have hardly ever shown an appetite for this to be held in Australia anyway, even Penrith and NRL figures said last year it belongs in England and its the place to play it. I also don't see traveling to Australia to play it the week before Vegas as an insurmountable obstacle. That could easily be done in my opinion.

Edited September 30 by Damien

[Eddie]

1 hour ago, Gerrumonside ref said:

I think that was part of the argument and quite a seedy one at that.

Why is it seedy? Most sports receive significant income from gambling sponsorships. 

[ATLANTISMAN]

Extra week everyone needs a break:)

Wigan v Warrington on Match 1st should be the opening game of the season and drop loop and tragic

Job done 

 

P

[Gerrumonside ref]

10 minutes ago, Eddie said:

Why is it seedy? Most sports receive significant income from gambling sponsorships. 

Because addiction to gambling is a social problem, Eddie.

I’m not sure about the ethics of encouraging Americans to gamble on a sport they don’t know or understand for the sake of a wager.

Seems difficult to justify and will just be adding to a problem that is large enough in itself and growing since they liberalised their gambling laws recently.

[Worzel]

1 hour ago, John m said:

Haha!!!

stuff vegas. Humberside is where the action is

Watching a few fans from Melbourne enjoy the delights of East Hull in late February would make my year  

[Eddie]

3 minutes ago, Gerrumonside ref said:

Because addiction to gambling is a social problem, Eddie.

I’m not sure about the ethics of encouraging Americans to gamble on a sport they don’t know or understand for the sake of a wager.

Seems difficult to justify and will just be adding to a problem that is large enough in itself and growing since they liberalised their gambling laws recently.

I know it is but it’s part of life also and always has been, plus the vast majority of gamblers do so with no ill effects whatsoever. 

[Gerrumonside ref]

Just now, Eddie said:

I know it is but it’s part of life also and always has been, plus the vast majority of gamblers do so with no ill effects whatsoever. 

Yes, but even the gambling industry itself recognises that once you start gambling on things you don’t understand then it is problematic - that’s the distinction I’m drawing.

[John m]

11 minutes ago, Worzel said:

Watching a few fans from Melbourne enjoy the delights of East Hull in late February would make my year  

The strip has nothing on craven street.

[Eddie]

12 minutes ago, Gerrumonside ref said:

Yes, but even the gambling industry itself recognises that once you start gambling on things you don’t understand then it is problematic - that’s the distinction I’m drawing.

Yes fair enough. 

[Whippet13]

3 hours ago, Henson Park Old Firm said:

Wigan regardless will want to play the WCC..... LL, CC, SL champions... they would want to win the Quaddy

If Wigan win at OT they will already have done this in 2024.

If the 2025 WCC is not played then they will remain holders so still have all the major trophies.

[Fly-By-TheWire]

5 hours ago, Henson Park Old Firm said:

Warrington and Strom will be champions 

I hope you're right, but as a Warrington fan I'd worry that the WCC would be a disruption to the next league campaign.   I'd value a repeat win of Super League (or even the Challenge Cup for that matter) way above the WCC.   The WCC is something nice to claim when you have a few Super League titles under your belt.   It doesn't really mean that much when you want to join the club of recent multiple-title winners.

[Click]

2 hours ago, Whippet13 said:

If Wigan win at OT they will already have done this in 2024.

If the 2025 WCC is not played then they will remain holders so still have all the major trophies.

That's not how the WCC works.

[John m]

9 minutes ago, Click said:

That's not how the WCC works.

All 4 trophies in a calendar year.

[Click]

Just now, John m said:

All 4 trophies in a calendar year.

Again... That isn't how the WCC works though, is it.

The WCC played this year was for the 2023 season, it has nothing to do with the other trophies Wigan won this year.

[Phil]

8 hours ago, John m said:

Was always at risk of not happening due to Las Vegas.

 

https://www.loverugbyleague.com/post/major-world-club-challenge-update-with-event-in-doubt-and-dependent-on-nrl-and-super-league-winners

At a risk of not happening because the aussies lose it regularly 

[overtheborder]

8 hours ago, phiggins said:

This was always going to be an issue as soon as Wigan and Warrington arranged the Vegas game. Once clubs make moves like this, off their own bat (and I completely get why they have), then the organisations in charge of schedules lose control of the schedules they are meant to be pulling together.

To be fair to both clubs I seem to remember reading in the older Vegas thread that both teams had sought approval from the RFL to organise this, so you'd hope the RFL have built this into their overall fixture planning (which I'm sure they have).

On the WCC, I think it'd be a shame for it not to go ahead for the sake of a game in Vegas, but then there'll be plenty who disagree I'm sure, so each to their own I guess. I'm personally a fan of the competition and would call it the pinnacle of RL, barring such an occurrence as the World Cup becoming a big deal, but again I'm sure many would disagree too, which I think is a problem - there doesn't seem to be any general consensus as to how important it actually is, you'd get a wildly different answer depending on who you ask, and I'd imagine that's a big contributor to it always seeming like we never know if teams are going to bother arranging it or not.

You wouldn't have this with the Champions League in football for instance (I get it's a very different commercial proposition), it's pretty much a non-negotiable if you want to be taken seriously.

[Fly-By-TheWire]

1 hour ago, Click said:

Again... That isn't how the WCC works though, is it.

The WCC played this year was for the 2023 season, it has nothing to do with the other trophies Wigan won this year.

I'd have to agree with this, and I think most fans would.  The WCC is the two champion teams from the previous season.   If the SL grand final was on the 1st January, we'd still consider it a trophy for the previous season.

As a Warrington fan, I also accept me commenting on the WCC is like me advising Beyonce on what type of boyfriend she should go for...   my opinions don't count for much in the discussion .

[John m]

1 hour ago, Click said:

Again... That isn't how the WCC works though, is it.

The WCC played this year was for the 2023 season, it has nothing to do with the other trophies Wigan won this year.

No but it still doesn’t change the fact of Wigan potentially winning 4 trophies in a calendar year.

[John m]

1 hour ago, Phil said:

At a risk of not happening because the aussies lose it regularly 

Of course they’d never admit that.

[N2022]

9 hours ago, John m said:

Also Vegas should have stayed as a purely NRL event.

Yep, WCC between two NRL sides. Spoiler... Panthers don't win it.

[Hopie]

1 hour ago, Fly-By-TheWire said:

I'd have to agree with this, and I think most fans would.  The WCC is the two champion teams from the previous season.   If the SL grand final was on the 1st January, we'd still consider it a trophy for the previous season..

The winners of the champions league in 2024 qualified for the tournament because of their success in the previous season, the trophy is still awarded in the 23/24 season.

The modern version of "all 4 cups" requires you to be defending champions because that's the only way to qualify for the WCC. The WCC is part of the season it takes place in, that's how time works.