The lack of ambition of the people running the game in this country is appalling. This initiative by Crowe should shame them into action. The only thing you can say in defence of the poor management of the game in this country is that they are hamstrung by the many reactionary forces in the RL community. There are so many parochial, narrow-minded, my-club-first morons that begrudge the players making good money, that don't want the game to expand geographically, that don't want clubs to grow their revenue and that don't care about the international game. We see these idiots on every salary cap debate thread. This mindset is a cancer that threatens to kill the professional game - the future seems to be at best a long slow decline.

We don't just need better administrators, we need to re-educate the fools that believe its pointless to try to take the game forward or that any change is part of some sinister Wigan plot to take over the game... Hopefully Crowe's ideas might be the start of a brighter future, unless of course the pro-CC, flat earth, back-to-the-1970s muppets continue to fight progress.

dont think the 8 team world club championship would work now but who knows maybe in the future, but i would deffo take the world club challenge to america for the begining of 2012 and see how that goes. hopefully the domestic league can go professinal it has the potential to and with super league and nrl players already stating that they would go hopefully it can kick off in the next couple of years.

I would take the WCC there next year (2012) and let Mr Crowe to organise it if anybody can try and make it work surley this is the man who is known worldwide and would get loads of publicity with this man who seems to love his South Sydney and also the game to grow in the states i really hope this is given a go, its got the backing of our currant chairman aswell.

Dry as a desert !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

cant see it happening....unless the yanks start their own league with franchises..like NFL,NHL, NBL,baseball thing, soccer thing.

anyway...on a slightly different note........watched NFL triple header on sky on thursday........someone asked "why triple header NFL on thanksgiving day?".........answer..."because theres nothing else to do except eat, laze around with family and watch TV"

closest we have to thanksgiving is christmas day.......what happens here?....no sport, not even horse racing, no nothing.......great escape, wallace and gromit and 17 episodes of eastenders..ffs

be nice to have all day sport, rugby, footy, racing, snooker, whatever.

That's what boxing days for.

I think you've just described a Sunday there!!

Seriously though, sport on Christmas Day will never happen - as the poster above has said, thats what Boxing Day is for.

Spot on. Would love to see Cruise, Diaz, De Caprio at a star-studded RL comp. Not sure Vegas is the place for it, but it's worth a try.

Someone should give Crowe a job in RL - at least there's someone who wants to see the game succeed and is willing to get off his backside to make it happen.

Next stop, Wigan v Saints match as the curtain-raiser the the Super Bowl!!!

Las Vegas? Get a grip. If you want to launch RL in America you do it somewhere where there's a ready made fan base - i.e. a state where there's college American Football but no NFL team - not a town full of tourists & ratted gamblers.

Boxing works in Vegas because it's all about style over substance & 1-off performances these days. The last thing RL needs is to follow in boxing's footsteps - a once great sport brought to it's knees & obscurity by free-loaders & crooks.

That said, cheering on Wigan with Cameron Diaz does have a certain appeal

Obviously not heard of UNLV then.

I can see it now :

Touchdown Richards. (and the points after are good)
Referee Ganson throwing a flag.
James Graham has been 'ejected' for arguing with the referees.
The Sam Tomkins shuffle.
Timeout called by Maguire.
Roberts leads the league in rushing yards.

Any more anyone?

(Big NFL fan BTW, go Chiefs!)

Should be some good interest in the first ever game on UK soil by an AMRL team!

Thursday 21st April 2011
Wigan Riversiders RLC v Philadelphia Fight
Robin Park Areana
Kick Off 19:00

I'm a massive NFL fan, so much so I spent a fair bit of money at the beginning of november, to go and watch the packers at the Jets and then the weekend later the Miami at the Ravens......For the americans sport is an event for the day. They basically use it as a social event, half the time they are down stairs drinking beer while watching the game on a TV, or outside still enjoying their tailgate party and only come in about 20 mins into the game, which seems mad, when the cheapest tickets were $135!!

Its a completely different culture to Europe, where you literally come for the sport and the other stuff is just an added extra. Its a family day out hence why there are so many intervals and times to eat and socialise etc. If we were to crack america I feel we would have to change the format of the game a bit, either, have 20 mins quaters or back to back games at the same venue, e.g. millenium magic type.

However I do think its fesible, there are many elements simlar the american football, e.g. we stop the clock when the ball is dead, we have a video ref, 6 tackles were they have 4 to go 10 yards. If you really want to crack america though us traditional fans would have to put up with the american language. I have a feeling they would call it a "down" instead of a tackle, they would possible called it a touchdown rather than a try and they would have a booth rather than a video ref, we would have to resist rolling our eyes and moaning under our breath.

I agree with others too, to really crack america you have to get into the collages, this is where all american sports start and were football (soccer) has failed. Soccer is the highest participated sport for under 18s in the US but once they go to collage they always choose a traditional american sport. We would need the coaches to work in the collages picking up the students who don't make the american football team or are athletes struggling for scholarships. We would then have to form a league systemm, sponsors and television deal, as the universities simply wouldn't pay for all that without these. We also need americans involved at all levels, nothing means more the americans than america!

Hard work and alot of organising and money has to be poured into it. But it is possible.