South Pacific nations are backing the Papua New Guinea NRL bid as they eye their own aspirations to compete in elite sporting competitions in multiple codes.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said on Wednesday the Australian Government and ARL Commission were at the pointy end of securing a $600 million(US$405 million) funding deal for PNG to enter the competition, likely in 2028 as the 19th team.
The Perth-based Western Bears are favourites to be the 18th side in 2027.
Albanese was asked on ABC Radio if the Australian Government had now reached an in-principle agreement with the ARL Commission on the PNG funding model.
“We are just working through the final details of that,” he said.
“I’ve been a strong advocate for PNG to have a team in the National Rugby League.”
AAP has been told by a high level source in the government the PNG NRL bid has the full support of other South Pacific nations.
Those nations are keen to participate in a larger and more meaningful way in multiple codes – including rugby league, rugby union and soccer.
They view the NRL bid as a stepping stone and leverage for their own involvement in other expanded professional competitions.
Soccer is the national sport in the Solomon Islands and Vanuatu, while rugby union and league are king in countries such as Fiji, Samoa and Tonga.
Fijian Drua and Moana Pasifika entered the Super Rugby competition in 2022.
Rugby league legend Petero Civoniceva’s long-term vision is to have a Fiji side in the NRL with the island nation already boasting teams – known as Kaiviti Silktails – in the Ron Massey Cup (2020-2023) and now Jersey Flegg Cup. Those sides have been supported by PacificAus Sports, an initiative of the Australian government.
Minister for the Pacific Pat Conroy, a passionate Sydney Roosters fan, has been a prime mover in working to make the PNG NRL bid a success.
The government has also helped bankroll Fijian Drua, showcasing it is prepared to take a wider sporting view in the region than just rugby league.
“It’s self-evident that the Australian government has a number of options about who we partner with,” Conroy said in May.
“We talk to all codes and we’ll support codes that will advance Australia’s interest and respond to the partner countries and bring our people together.”
One of the key benefits of the PNG NRL bid from the Australian government’s point of view is combating Chinese competition in not just PNG, but also the region.
It is about securing Australia’s position and ties in a strategic geopolitical sense.
The NRL bid will integrate PNG with Australia in a sporting sense and that will cement other partnerships economically, culturally and socially.
Albanese reiterated on Wednesday how blown away he had been by the interest in rugby league in PNG.
“There is no country on earth that is more passionate, including Australia, than PNG when it comes to rugby league,” he said.
“When I walked the Kokoda Track in the lead up to Anzac Day with Prime Minister (James) Marape earlier this year, it’s quite astonishing that you would emerge from the thickest bush … and you see little kids in Broncos or Cowboys jumpers,” he said.
