ARLC TV Deal A Mixed Blessing

The Australian Rugby League Commission has reached a deal with the Nine Network that is slightly better than the pre-covid one and now all media deals run through to 2027. This puts RL in Australia on a sound financial footing. Considering local RL is a sport with pro teams only on the Australian East Coast and New Zealand, it's not a bad deal. How much more the lesser populated western side of Australia would add to any deal is uncertain. 

So that's the good part. What about the other part that makes this a mixed blessing. Well, it seems international RL isn't going to be enlarged, in fact mid season teat matches in the southern hemisphere look to be canned. The Pacific Island nations love tests and NZ is quite keen but they have little support in Australia. 

One of the ways RL maximises its return is having long seasons to satisfy an insatiable media. The game is tough on the body and the only way to get a reasonable off season for top players is to forgo international tests. 

The bottom line is with the domestic game in Australia financially sorted and international RL not having anywhere the same earning opportunity, it is spurned. The fact it offers variety and another way to promote the game is lost on those who study balance sheets. 

Up north: England has ignored international RL in its area because there was more money playing the top southern nations. Now they have shown domestic RL is their only interest, it leaves England without stern international opposition. So the northern side of the game needs to forget naval gazing Australia and develop a meaningful international calendar in its own region.

If England wants test matches, it needs to foster them in its own backyard. Initially, there may be some blow out scores but in due course, the competition will improve. It won't be much of a money spinner, at least not initially but it will lift the credibility of the code and will do much for the game as a whole. 

In a world ruled by the dollar, it would be nice if the northern hemisphere created a strong annual international scene regardless of financial returns. That could be a positive that this mixed blessing brings.   

2021 World Rankings - Women's & Wheelchair

Having discussed the men's side of the rankings (see here), we move on to areas that are much newer to the rankings. The women's list goes back to 2017 and the wheelchair list is new for 2021. 

Women's: Ironically Australia seems to take this side of international RL more seriously than the men's. They and New Zealand are a step up on the rest although England is working hard to close the gap. The + and - signs in the 2021 section are changes in ranking compared to 2019. I'm pretty sure a 2020 list was never made. Colour coding is used to show regions.

Wheelchair: If you haven't seen this version of the game, the skill and courage is amazing. It's also a mixed sport for men and women to compete together. France is at the top of the ranking here and they certainly are taking this form of the sport seriously. it is a Europe based sport with only Australia from outside of that region listed. Surely the list will lengthen over the next few years. 

In this brief video, here's a try scored in an international match between England and France. 

2021 World Rankings - Men

Every year I look at the world rankings for RL. It is based on how many internationals are played, the ranking of the opponent and how recently they were played. Like any ranking system, it doesn't always reflect the present standard perfectly. If a country plays few internationals, then it will hurt its ranking and place it lower than it deserves. Even in Soccer, where internationals are given much significance, there is no shortage of anomalies in how nations are rated.

So with that understanding, are they worth much?  I still feel they give a general picture and hopefully an incentive to take international matches seriously, not an attitude the sport of RL is imbued with. So surely Australia is top, considering its depth of talent. Err, no. Like I said you have to take international RL seriously to get a good ranking. Below there are two sides to the chart, one 2021 and the other a historical list going back to 2013. 

It's colour coded by region. Yellow is Pacific and is the strongest region. Blue is Europe, salmon the Americas, green Africa/Middle East and orange Asia. The + and - signs in the 2021 column are based on a comparison with the 2019 ranking. I don't have a 2020 list and I don't think one was ever collated.

The women's and wheelchair rankings can be seen by clicking here.