Radical plan for a 20-team league revolution in a $400M master plan

The ARL Commission plans to expand the NRL into a 20-team competition in the biggest upheaval since the 1990s Super League war.

News Corp reports that ARLC chairman Peter V’landys and Sydney Roosters boss Nick Politis are behind a $400 million plan that would see rugby league suspended until the 2032 Brisbane Olympics Australia’s main football code becomes.

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On the expansion side, the South East Queensland-based Dolphins got off to a sizzling start to the NRL season with stunning victories over the Roosters and Canberra Raiders.

And the NRL is looking to continue growing by adding three more teams to the competition to capitalize on rugby league strongholds.

V’landys confirmed that there had been talks of a 20-team competition at an annual club meeting.

“I’m all for watching a 20-team competition because you have to set goals,” he said.

According to News Corp, three new expansion teams are believed to be worth $20 million in annual funding support over the next 20 years — a $400 million windfall for the NRL.

A Pasifika franchise is the leading contender for winning an 18th NRL team license and would be based full-time in Cairns and host several games in Samoa, Tonga and Papua Guinea.

There is also talk of the beloved North Sydney Bears being part of a merger with a Pasifika team in a bid to return the Bears to the top tier of rugby for the first time since 1999.

The Australian government will provide tens of millions of dollars in financial support to fund a Pasifika team.

Teams in the mix for expansion licenses include North Sydney, a Pasifika offering, a second New Zealand team, PNG, Perth and Brisbane’s Firehawks and Jets. V’landys also said “never say never” when asked about a possible Adelaide team.

The 20-team plan would be the biggest shock to Australia’s rugby league landscape in 30 years.

The ARL expanded from 16 to 20 clubs in 1995, adding the North Queensland Cowboys, South Queensland Crushers, Auckland Warriors and Perth’s Western Reds.

The 20-team format existed for just two seasons before the Super League war which resulted in two competing competitions in 1997 before a compromise in 1998 sparked the birth of the National Rugby League.

“Yeah, I suggested we go to 20 teams,” Politis told News Corp.

NRL CEO Andrew Abdo and V’landys are reportedly poised to announce an 18th NRL team in time for the next TV rights deal in 2027, before adding 19th and 20th teams within the next decade.