How the Pacific Championships became Rugby League’s new growth engine
The Pacific Championships started as a diplomatic experiment but it's transformed into a tournament that’s competitive, commercially potent, culturally driven, and that’s fueling Rugby League’s growth
Today’s newsletter is presented by NSC Sports Investment Summit 2025
Last week’s Happy Hour sports industry networking event in Melbourne was a hit!
It was awesome to see so many people from across Melbourne’s sports industry gather for a fun evening at the Royal Saxon last Thursday.
Check out the event photos HERE.
In partnership with MEE Agency, we’d like to thank all those who joined us, along with our amazing event partners! 🙌
Groblox - Who returned as our Presenting Partner and who are helping ensure that we can deliver our sports industry event series in a fun, meaningful and sustainable way. What’s Groblox? Their modular structures are tailored for modern sports & entertainment events and experiential marketing - Check them out here.
Sport Design Australia - A top-tier sports creative agency that can help turn your creative desires into game-changing results. They’re experts in branding, design and creative support for sport and are trusted by top sports organisations to deliver creative that builds brand, engages fans and increases revenue.
Asahi Super Dry – Who have supported us from the start, and who always help make our Happy Hour events extra special!
What’s next?
We’re in the process of organising more events across Australia, and can’t wait to do it all again!
Cheers 🍻
Swyftx agreed to a multi-million-dollar deal with Rugby Australia which will see it take over as the official naming rights sponsor of both Super Rugby Pacific and the Super Rugby Women’s competitions in Australia until the end of 2027
Under Armour entered into a 5-year partnership with the with the Canberra Raiders, marking its first-ever NRL club collaboration - From the 2026 NRL season, the Raiders will step out in an all-new kit
BKT Tyres became Cricket Australia’s naming rights partner of the Men’s One Day International and T20 International series against India starting this weekend
Melbourne Renegades welcomed Mexican-inspired food brand Old El Paso™ as an Official Platinum Partner (BBL), Official Partner (WBBL) and Official World Food Partner (BBL) - the brand’s iconic yellow logo will feature on the BBL team’s sleeve throughout the season
DiDi become the Official Rideshare Partner of the Victoria Racing Club and iconic Melbourne Cup Carnival via a new 2-year partnership
North Melbourne FC announced a new 2-year major partnership with consumer electronics brand CHiQ which became a co-major partner of the club’s AFL program and a platinum partner of its AFLW program - its logo will be featured across both sets of playing apparel
Europcar renewed its partnership with the NBL as the Official Rental Car Partner of the league until the end of the 2026-27 season which will see the brand continue its commitment to the NBL’s referees, championing their vital role in the game’s success both on and off the court
Snap Fitness became a partner of Melbourne United for the 2025/26 season and the official sponsor of its new Snap Fitness Dream Team, who wow audiences inside of John Cain Arena at every home game
Newcastle Jets welcomed nib as the new Principal Partner of the Club’s A-League Women’s team - the nib logo will feature across the front of the women’s kits for the next 2 seasons
Sydney FC and McDonald’s Australia renewed their partnership for another 2 years - McDonald’s will continue its naming rights to the Sky Blues’ state-wide school holiday clinics
Melbourne Victory announced provider of building services and technical solutions Airmaster as an Associate Partner of the Club for the next 3 seasons - the two organisations will co-design a new youth leadership program aimed at empowering young people
Aiper extended its partnership with the Sydney Sixers which will see its branding once again feature prominently on the back of both WBBL and BBL playing and training shirts
New Balance and KIC teamed up to host an activation on ‘Afloat’ - a floating restaurant & bar on Melbourne’s Yarra River
Adelaide Lightning announced a suite of new partnerships - Turkey Flat Vineyards (Official Wine Beverage Partner), Urban Rest (Official Player Housing Partner) and Dicolor (Exclusive LED Signage Partner)
Monster Energy returned as Presenting Rights Partner of the 2025 Boost Mobile AUSX Supercross Championship
The respective captains of the Brisbane Lions and Brisbane Broncos (NRL + NRLW) gathered in front of media to launch two limited-edition XXXX can designs off the back of their Premiership-winning seasons - see here
Brisbane Bullets, in partnership with Playbk Sports launched ‘Bullets Assist’ - a FREE digital platform with bite-sized training modules focused on Mindset & Habits, Fuel & Nutrition and Strength & Conditioning - it received funding support from the Queensland Government’s Department of Sport, Racing and Olympic and Paralympic Games
Thanasi Kokkinakis teamed up with Melbourne Racing Club to help promote this weekend’s Caulfield Cup
Australian Sports Foundation had another record-breaking year for sport fundraising, with $118.8 million raised in the 2024–25 financial year, marking a 20% increase on the previous year and the highest total in ASF’s history
Netflix launched its Netflix Sports Club pop up activation at Northbridge Brewing Co for a WWE Crown Jewel watch party - it was one of multiple fan activations which took place across Perth to mark the WWE major event
Cricket Australia announced the Seven Network’s digital streaming platform 7plus will host the FAST channel Cricket Gold featuring some of the game’s greatest matches and most iconic players
Cricket Australia and the Big Bash League launched its ‘Let’s BBYELL’ campaign which celebrates the high-energy, unmissable summer experience that is the Big Bash Leagues
Cricket Australia and New Balance unveiled their new playing kits for the Big Bash Leagues
Tennis Australia announced its plans for its biggest and boldest Australian Open yet - New highlights include, a world-first 1-Point Slam (amateur vs pro) with $1 million prize money, an expanded opening week with free kids’ entry, live music every night on Grand Slam Oval and a bold new lineup of food and drink experiences
Tennis Australia hosted its annual Australian Open 2026 Launch event in Melbourne - check out the footage below and the spectacular images here
NRL announced plans to launch NRL IMAX, a state-of-the-art sports bar set to transform Caxton Street into the entertainment capital of Australian sport - more here
PNG Prime Minister James Marape unveiled the name of the NRL’s 19th franchise - ‘Papua New Guinea Chiefs’
The 2025 Repco Bathurst 1000 has delivered a blockbuster result across all platforms - 198,203 fans attended the event and 7plus recorded its biggest streaming day this year outside of the AFL Grand Final
NSC Sports Investment Summit 2025
Join the NSC Sports Investment Summit 2025 – where Australian sport, government, and finance leaders unite to shape $1 billion in new investment for sport’s future.
Now Powered by Deloitte, the Summit delivers bigger conversations, deeper insights, and new opportunities to explore investment innovation along the Green & Gold Runway.
Early Bird prices extended exclusively for Notice subscribers! Register before Friday 24 October using code NOTICE.
Hear from global leaders including FX Bonnallie, Kieren Perkins OAM, Brian Delaney, Cameron Murray, Sandra Sweeney, Craig Carracher AM, Mark Falvo, Sarah Loh, Damien Moston, Andy Marston, and more.
Guest Writer: Dr Sarah Wymer
Today we’re welcoming back one of its favourite subject matter experts - Dr Sarah Wymer, Senior Lecturer at Auckland University of Technology.
Sarah holds a PhD in Sport Management, specialising in sport marketing, digital media, and digital broadcasting, with 15+ years of experience across Australia, New Zealand, and the US.
A die-hard NRL fan and Warriors supporter since 1995, she integrates rugby league into her research and teaching - winning the Griffith University VC Excellence Award in 2024 for her work with the Gold Coast Titans.
Today, Sarah breaks down how the Pacific Championships started as a diplomatic experiment and has transformed into a tournament that’s competitive, commercially potent, culturally driven, and that’s fueling Rugby League’s growth across the region.
Enjoy the read!
How the Pacific Championships became Rugby League’s new growth engine
In 2017, commentators openly questioned whether anyone outside the Kangaroos’ inner circle even cared about international rugby league. Crowds were patchy, governments were indifferent, and global fixtures felt like afterthoughts.
Fast forward to now…
The Rugby League Pacific Championships kick off this weekend in a window that used to be little more than a placeholder. Once the NRL Grand Final wrapped, the calendar quietened, and attention turned to pre-season speculation. International fixtures were space fillers, not showpieces. But not anymore. While Australia heads to England for the Ashes, the real spotlight sits across the Pacific - a competition where any nation could realistically win.
The hierarchy has shifted. In the Pacific Championships, Tonga, Samoa, and New Zealand headline the Championship, while Fiji, Papua New Guinea, and the Cook Islands contest the Bowl.
What once filled the quiet between seasons has become the game’s most powerful growth window
Representation as a Competitive Edge
Not long ago, Pacific Island squads were largely filled with players overlooked by Tier 1 nations. Today, they’re led by first-choice NRL stars. Tonga field Taumalolo, Fonua-Blake, Kaufusi, Utoikamanu, and Halasima. Samoa counters with Luai, Paulo, To’o, Nanai, Papali’i, and now Payne Haas - one of the game’s most dominant forwards, who this year confirmed his allegiance to Samoa. Haas’ decision extends a movement that began in 2017, when Jason Taumalolo’s switch from New Zealand to Tonga changed everything. Tonga’s rise and Samoa’s 2021 World Cup final run didn’t just challenge Australia’s dominance; they rewired what international rugby league stood for.
Heritage became the pinnacle, not the alternative - This alters not just the competitive balance but the commercial equation
When players of this calibre choose culture, fans follow. The 26 October Samoa v Tonga clash at Suncorp Stadium is already being billed as one of the biggest Tests in Australia in over a decade, with Australia’s rapidly growing Pasifika community expected to fill the 52,500-seat venue. The 9 November grand final in Sydney is also tracking toward a sell-out.
Payne Haas’ decision to represent Samoa has only amplified that momentum. Within days of his announcement, ticket sales for the Samoa v Tonga clash more than doubled, with organisers now forecasting more than 35,000 fans at Suncorp. Samoan coach Ben Gardiner credited the surge directly to Haas’ inclusion, calling it “hugely inspirational not only for the team, but for Samoa as a nation.” And the pattern isn’t new. After selling out Mt Smart Stadium three times, drawing 25,600 against the Kangaroos in 2018, 26,000 against the Kiwis in 2022, and 25,000 again in 2024, Tonga’s next fixture will move to Eden Park in 2025, a venue upgrade reflecting the scale of Pacific demand, with 50,000 expected to fill the stadium in a sea of red.
When Heritage Became a Market
Last year’s Championships drew 6.2 million total viewers (+40 percent year-on-year), one million for the Pacific Cup final alone (+79 percent), and the largest Sydney Test crowd since 2008. The women’s tournament added another 1.4 million viewers.
The NRL shared last week that rugby league is now the No. 1 sport in Australia and the Pacific for total viewership, surpassing every other code.
The numbers are staggering, but the meaning is more important: the Pacific Championships have reconnected rugby league to the communities that sustain it.
Born from a $7 million partnership between the Australian Government and the NRL, the Pacific Championships were never simply about scheduling more games, they were a deliberate act of “football diplomacy.”
Designed to strengthen ties across the Pacific family, create pathways for local athletes, and showcase the shared identity that already defines half the NRL’s playing group, the initiative used sport as soft power. In doing so, it laid the groundwork for the Pacific Championships to evolve from a diplomatic project into one of rugby league’s most valuable assets.
Nearly 52% of NRL players are Pasifika, with another 11% Māori, evidence that cultural identity now underpins the league’s talent, appeal, and connection with fans.
Culture isn’t a side story anymore; it’s the business model.
The result is a sport no longer defined by hierarchy but by belonging. The Pacific Championships haven’t just grown rugby league’s audience; they’ve redefined its purpose.
Turning Cultural Reach into Commercial Value
That reach now extends far beyond diaspora audiences. Free-to-air coverage via PacificAus TV delivers the Championships to 17 broadcasters across 11 nations, including Samoa, Tonga, the Cook Islands, Vanuatu, and Kiribati. For many, it’s the first time their national sides have been televised free at home, turning fandom into regional identity.
That identity is monetising fast. Dynasty Sport, which holds licensing rights for on-field and off-field apparel for Tonga, Samoa, Fiji, and the Kiwis, has turned cultural connection into retail gold.
Samoa’s heritage jersey sold out within hours of launch, with fans begging for restocks, while Tonga’s merchandise disappeared just as quickly across official channels, clear evidence of identity translating directly into consumer behaviour.
Even preparation now plays a role in building the emotional infrastructure that sustains rugby league’s growth. Tonga’s decision to return home for camp (their first in 6 years) aligns with the nation’s 150-year constitutional celebrations, turning training into a statement of identity. The visit reconnects players with their families and communities, but it also strengthens ties across the wider Pacific network. When diaspora audiences in Australia and New Zealand watch that homecoming online, they’re not just observing, they’re participating in a shared story of belonging. That emotional resonance is what translates into viewership, merchandise demand, and digital engagement across markets.
On digital, Tonga’s team announcement generated over 30,000 reactions, Samoa’s 35,000, and their media-day content more than 45,000, outperforming many NRL clubs in digital engagement. Shares, comments, and emotional responses were just as strong, reflecting an audience deeply invested, not passively watching. It’s the kind of engagement most sports spend years and significant marketing budgets, trying to build. For broadcasters and sponsors, that matters…
Emotionally charged audiences don’t just watch; they amplify
They drive organic reach, shape storylines, and keep content alive long after the final whistle. In a landscape where attention drives rights value, Pacific rugby league’s digital footprint highlights a market defined by depth, not reach, audiences whose sustained engagement strengthens both broadcast and brand equity.
That growing emotional and commercial momentum is now influencing how the game is valued at the highest level.
Broadcast Power and the Value of Emotion
Channel Seven’s reported A$12 million purchase of the 2026 Rugby League World Cup rights (the largest international rugby league deal in Australian history) lands at a pivotal moment. It marks the first time in decades that Seven, not Nine, will hold the sport’s premier global tournament.
That distinction matters. Nine currently owns the NRL rights, positioning itself as the sport’s traditional broadcast home. Seven’s investment signals something new: that international rugby league, long dismissed as a ratings risk, now holds commercial weight of its own.
When Seven bid big for 2026, it wasn’t just buying another tournament; it was buying emotion, the hymns, flags, and passion that have become rugby league’s most valuable currency. The timing is no accident. As the NRL prepares to renegotiate its multibillion-dollar domestic broadcast deal, the Pacific story gives it leverage. It proves that rugby league’s global growth narrative isn’t confined to Sydney or Brisbane, it’s powered by the islands.
International fixtures now deliver the kind of scale, energy, and diversity that extend, rather than rival, the NRL’s domestic dominance.
Every statistic, every flag, every broadcast shot of red and white in the stands points to the same conclusion: this isn’t post-season filler, it’s the game’s fastest-growing asset.
The Pacific Championships have redefined what international rugby league represents: competitive, commercially potent, and culturally driven. What began as a diplomatic experiment in regional connection has become a strategic cornerstone, a platform where community pride, commercial momentum, and global audience demand now converge.
The sports industry sponsorship openings board gives sports organisations an opportunity to showcase their partnership openings, and brands the ability to discover the right fit.
2XU - Global CRM Manager
A-Leagues - Senior Business Development Manager
Adelaide United FC - Commercial Operations Coordinator
adidas - Senior Manager, Category Management (Originals) Pacific
adidas - Senior Manager, Digital Activation
AFC Women’s Asian Cup LOC - Digital & Social Marketing Manager
AIA Australia - Senior Specialist Brand Marketing – Sponsorships, Events and Ambassadors
Amer Sports - Digital Marketing Executive
Amer Sports - Head of Marketing
Australian Golf Services - Partnership Development Coordinator
Badminton Australia - Events & Communications Manager
BasketballWA - Head of Media and Communications
Beiersdorf - Sport Sales & Marketing Administrator
Cbus Super Fund - Senior Manager, Brand & Partnership Activation
Central Coast Mariners FC - Partnerships Manager
ClassPass - Field Account Executive - Brisbane
Cowboys Leagues Club Limited - Marketing and Loyalty Manager
Cowboys Leagues Club Limited - Marketing Executive
Cronulla Sharks - Community Engagement Lead
Dabble - Campaign Manager (Partnerships)
Electronic Arts - CRM & Owned Channels Associate
Engage Digital Partners - Social Media Manager - Sports
Football Tasmania - Social Media and Digital Marketing Specialist
Foxtel Group - PR Manager - Sport
Gemba - Analyst
Gemba - Creative
Gemba - Senior Event Producer
Harry the Hirer - Social Media Coordinator
Hawthorn FC - Digital Commercial Lead
Hudl - Solutions Consultant
Interplay Media - Digital Sales Manager - Sport, Gaming & Entertainment Media
IRONMAN Oceania - Signage and Activation Manager
JD Sports Australia & New Zealand - Senior Digital Trade Manager
lululemon - Brand Manager, Australia & New Zealand
lululemon - Manager, Digital Marketing, AUNZ | 13 Months Contract
McDonald’s - National Media and Sponsorships Manager
Melbourne FC - Graphic Designer
Melbourne Racing Club - Foundation Manager
Moreton Hire - Marketing Coordinator
NBL - Commercial Partnerships Coordinator - Media & Marketing
Netball ACT - Chief Executive Officer
Netball Australia - Chief Commercial Officer & League
Netball Australia - Digital Support
Netball Australia - Legacy Manager (Netball World Cup)
Netball Australia - Schools Engagement Manager (12 month fixed-term)
Netball Australia - Senior Manager - Marketing & Communications (Netball World Cup)
Netball Victoria - General Manager – Marketing and Digital
Netball WA - Marketing Lead
Netball World Cup Sydney 2027 - Sponsorship Manager
North Melbourne FC - Digital Marketing Lead
NRL Touch Football - Digital Services Coordinator
O’Neills Sportswear - Digital & Social Media Manager
Panthers Rugby League - Digital Content Producer
Penrith Panthers - Partnerships Coordinator Full-Time
PlayHQ Sports - Senior Product Manager
Queensland Academy of Sport - Executive Director, Corporate Services
Queensland Cricket - General Manager Community Cricket and Infrastructure
RACV - Golf & Sports Sales Manager
Reebok - Category Manager (Buyer)
Reebok - Marketing Manager
Southern Cross Austereo - Sport Implementation Coordinator
Sports Entertainment Network - Commercial Manager
Sports Entertainment Network - Digital & Social Media Content Coordinator
Sports Entertainment Network - Partnership Manager
Sportsbet - Relationship Manager
Sports Entertainment Network - Corporate Ticketing Manager
Swinburne University of Technology - Lecturer, Sport Management
Tabcorp - General Manager Marketing
Tennis Australia - Head of Marketing, Events and Commercial
Tennis Australia - New Partnerships Lead
Tennis Australia - Premium Hospitality Lead
TGI Sport - Account Executive
TGI Sport - Account Manager
THE ICONIC - Head of Sports
The West Australian - Sports Sales Executive
Two Circles - Sponsorship Sales Lead
Venues NSW - Event Operations - Event Manager
WNBL - Commercial Manager
WNBL - General Manager Operations
Not a subscriber yet? Discover specialised sports marketing insights, tailored for sports industry professionals within Australia and across the globe. If you work in sports for an agency, brand or rights-holder then this is for you.