SBW touted for Samoa v Tonga test in Utah
The promoter of a planned Tonga-Samoa rugby league test on US soil is prepared to stump up a seven-figure guarantee to avoid another Denver debacle.
The New Zealand Rugby League wrote off debts of more than $300,000 related to the controversial Denver test against England in June, 2018.
US resident Paul Langi Kinikini is behind the Tonga v Samoa bid that could result in Super League recruit Sonny Bill Williams and NRL star Jason Taumalolo squaring off in an international clash in Utah. Kinikini has made his pitch to the International Rugby League, which is now conducting a feasibility study on the bid.
Utah has been put forward as the location because of its large Mormon and Polynesian populations. If given the green light, the game would go ahead at the 20,000-seat Rio Tinto Stadium, the home of Major League Soccer team Real Salt Lake.
However, rugby league’s last foray into the US was not a financially successful one. The promoter of the England-New Zealand test in Denver didn’t meet his financial obligations, leaving league officials gun shy. But Kinikini said he was prepared to put his money where his mouth is with a seven-figure upfront guarantee.
‘‘Yes, I would totally put that up front,’’ Kinikini told The Sun-Herald. ‘‘That is not a problem. I heard about the debacle in Denver and I’m doing everything to avoid that.
‘‘I think they picked the wrong venue and went about it [the wrong way]. I want to show everyone I am the real thing. You won’t come and get a repeat of Denver.
‘‘I’m just waiting to host this. I’ve got everything in order, I’ve been doing it for the last two years in the event I am ready to pull the trigger.
‘‘We would give them such a party that the players – and even the coaches – would love to do a repeat. We would do it American style. We’d blow up the game how we do things here, we would give them enough [promotional] air time. We can get the proper sponsors and feel we could kick this game off to another level.’’
Samoa officials have made discreet inquiries about the availability of Williams, who is said to be interested in representing the Pacific nation after switching back to rugby league with the Toronto Wolfpack. If that was to occur, it raises the prospect of the cross-code star coming up against Tongan sensation Taumalolo in a mouth-watering clash in a potentially lucrative new market.
There are, however, challenges to making the American clash happen this year. The schedule for the Oceania Cup was released during the week and it will be difficult to cram in a Utah fixture into an already packed calendar. There is also the issue of the internal politics in Tongan football – Tonga National Rugby League is appealing against its expulsion from the IRL, with the case to be heard on March 18.
Still, there remains an interest in bringing premium rugby league content to the US. NRL chief executive Todd Greenberg revealed last week that a feasibility study will be conducted into the prospect of taking a State of Origin match overseas in a bid to maximise the value of the next broadcast deal.
Kinikini said he hoped to make Tongan test matches an annual American event.