Taking league to America

EVERY Saturday the team talk about the big issues in sport on the local, national and world stages.

Today Glen, Jason and Sean tackle the NRL’s desire to promote and grow rugby league in America – including the recent rumours that they will take the Australia Tonga Test match to the USA in October.

Jason Gibbs: I applaud the NRL for thinking outside the box.

In my personal experience my American fans always fall in love with rugby league – they love the pace of it, the skill and the contact.

But they also ‘fall in love’ with the game because of their constant exposure to it – they easily become immersed in the game and the culture.

That’s why I am convinced one off Test matches in America is not the best way to promote or grow the game.

If we want to capture the American market we need to tug at their heart string, feed their patriotic beliefs and make them rush to rugby league.

In short, we (Australia) need to play the United States on home soil.

In Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific region the likes of Cameron Smith, Greg Inglis, Andrew Fifita and Jason Taumalolo are household names – if you’re a dedicated league fan.

But even the most passionate of league fans would struggle to name current New Zealand captain, let alone confidently name the Fiji, Tonga or Samoa skippers.

The popularity of football sky-rocketed in the USA after they hosted the 1994 FIFA World Cup and I believe rugby league will enjoy a boost after they host the 2025 rugby league World Cup.

But in the meantime the NRL needs to nurture the game more, however, one off Tests are not the answer.

I think game would be better served by a series.

Let’s put together and ‘Australia B’ team and send them to the USA for a tour including a series of games against the USA, clinics at schools and open sessions.

A one off game will hold their attention for a little while – but a tour has a better chance of securing a place in their hearts. Sean Teuma: Any attempts to grow the game into the North American market have to be applauded.

Americans marvel at how league players are able to compete, especially without the 10kg of padding they are accustomed to watching gridiron players wear.

Tonga showed during the World Cup they are onto something special, and there is no doubt a match against the Kangaroos would be free-flowing, and a great promotion for the game.

People will look at the empty rows of seats in Denver for the England and New Zealand test match and say that they are flogging a dead horse in trying to sell the game there.

But if they get the stadium choice right, they will be able to sell it out and create a spectacle.

Far too often the view in rugby league has been NRLcentric with little to no ambition of growing the game to the heights it is capable of.

Involvement of minor nations continues to grow, and officials would be kidding themselves if they didn’t give cracking it into America a decent go.

Sorry fellas. I couldn’t disagree more.

Australian rugby league officials need to get a grip.

Rugby league is a game that thrives in the north of England and in the Oceania region.

I’m all for trying to grow it further internationally and I agree the strategy in trying to give the Yanks a quality game of rugby league to savour is well meaning.

But a Test match between Australia and Tonga. Really?

I think that’s an insult to Aussie and Tongan rugby league supporters and is actually demeaning to Test match football.

It deserves to be played on the highest-profile stage in either Tonga or Australia.

If we want to continue putting a toe in the water in places like America, let’s give them a quality exhibition game.

Something more akin to entertainment without the pride of nations riding on it.

Americans wouldn’t know the difference. These are people remember brought up on the WWE.

Let’s concentrate more for now on growing the sport in places like Tonga.