It's not just attracting fans and sponsors from new markets, it's giving existing sponsors more value aswell.

Nines is fast and furious and the success in NZ is a testament to that. Dave Smith has explicitly said it's the perfect tool to promote the sport in new areas and it's hard to disagree with him.

If the game continues to look inward then it'll just end up shrinking. Imagine if Baskerville, etc had had so little faith in the game that it never reached Australia or New Zealand?

It's legal so it's ok?
You're are the CEO of BA Tobacco and I claim my £5,000,000,000,000,000!

Just so you know. THey haven't been/ Loss after loss for some clubs like the Storm and Broncos over the years. Last season the Sea Eagles poster a very, very small profit after years of losses and just so you know they don't get money from their leagues club. North Sydney got $400k from their leagues club, but aren't an NRL club.

I suspect you are not as informed as you think you are Buggo. Some NRL teams receive a fair amount from Leagues Clubs, others don't. Some of the football clubs have been running at a loss. Again as JB has pointed out, the Leagues club have different boards etc and are no longer are bread winners for a first grade team. The TV deal was the turning point for many. And as GF has pointed out. There were clubs that went to the NRL and asked for an advance for the following season when it was announced. That is fact.

Here is a copy of the 2013 PANTHERS GROUP accounts for everyone's perusal. www.panthers.com.au/wp-content/u ... LC_Web.pdf

Here is a copy of the 2013 PANTHERS GROUP accounts for everyone's perusal. www.panthers.com.au/wp-content/u ... LC_Web.pdf

It sounds like this year we are definitely getting the 6 team WCC where 3 NRL teams play 3 SL teams over a single weekend. It also appears that two of the NRL teams are simply opting in to playing in it rather than needing to qualify, which makes it an absolute farce IMO. We also have no idea which English teams will compete, I think it should be GF winners, CC winners and league leaders. If this was announced sooner it would at least add a bit more incentive to coming top.

I'm not really sure what this expansion of the WCC acheives tbh. It's basically the same game we have now with two extra friendlies. I really wish the WCC would be taken more seriously, if properly planned and marketed a full on 8 team tournament featuring group stages and knock out rounds could be massive, especially over here. If the Aussies, as rumoured, don't want to play internationals next year then I would be looking at staging a World Club Competition next Autumn instead.

With regards to the 9s, the Auckland tournament will be here to stay for the time being due to last year's success. There was talk of invitational places for SL teams but that would be very disruptive to the SL season. Our own version at the Magic Weekend would have got my vote, it could have been played in Round 23 as a standalone tournament whilst the post-split fixtures were sorted, and get rid of the additional fixture aspect of the current MW format.

Auckland pre season nines
Magic weekend European nines
NRL and SL gf to be aligned and played on same weekend
Proper world club final two weeks after GF's
World nines end oct.
Internationals November
That would do me