Manly think they deserve to go back to Las Vegas. Will the NRL let them?
Manly owner Scott Penn wants the NRL to abandon plans to have all 17 clubs get the chance to play in Las Vegas, insisting the Sea Eagles and Roosters should return next year after holding talks with an NFL heavyweight about potential investment in the club.
As NRL clubs clamour to be included on next year’s trip to Las Vegas - Australian Rugby League Commission boss Peter V’landys has previously flagged all clubs will be given a chance - Penn has made his most vocal comments on scrapping that proposal.
The Sea Eagles and Roosters sacrificed a home game to play in Las Vegas, and both sides emerged victorious from the Allegiant Stadium double-header with victories over the Rabbitohs and Broncos respectively.
Asked if he wanted Manly to play in Las Vegas in 2025, Penn said: “Absolutely. We put our hand up at the very beginning with a submission and we said, ‘we’re in this for the five years’. This is a commitment we not only believe in, but we want to make it our own.
We’ve laid the foundations, so it would be disappointing not to take it to the next level. We’ve already invested in the concept by being a home team. I’d like to see us both [Sea Eagles and Roosters] rewarded - and we both won. We’re both looking at it as a long-term play.”
Penrith, who will be without their traditional home next year as it undergoes a $300 million renovation, and the Storm, who aggressively pitched to be part of this year’s Las Vegas experiment, are considered frontrunners to be on the plane next year.
The Manly Sea Eagles were the first team win an NRL match in Las Vegas.CREDIT: NRL PHOTOS
But the Warriors and Raiders, who are keen on striking a partnership with the Las Vegas NFL franchise of the same name, have joined other clubs in expressing interest in going to the US.
Roosters chairman Nick Politis has already expressed his club’s desire to return to Las Vegas next year.
There have also been suggestions the winning clubs earn the right to return the following year.
“I like the concept and if it wasn’t around a long-term strategy, then I would be fine with that, but this is a long-term strategy for us,” Penn said. “To do that we have to make investments.
“We do want to genuinely partner with NFL teams and take it to the next level, but if you’re only here for 12 months it can be hard to do that.”
Penn confirmed he held talks with San Francisco 49ers president Al Guido on the morning of the Las Vegas games about potentially buying a minority stake in the Sea Eagles, a result which could have huge ramifications for rugby league in America.
He was very open to the idea and while we want to keep a majority stake in the club, we can always look at potential opportunities for minority investment,” Penn said
More than 40,000 fans attended the Super Bowl venue for the season start, which the NRL considered a rousing success for the first competition games outside of Australia and New Zealand.
But Penn pointed to Formula 1 flooding the United States market with three races this year as a model the NRL should pursue.
“We have to get broadcast and our game in front of American eyeballs,” Penn said.
That means if we can play two or three weekends a year and maybe in different cities, maybe that will increase our presence.
“Formula 1 didn’t have a race here until five years ago, and now they’ve got three. So, it’s really starting to capture the imagination. I definitely think that needs to be the short to medium-term strategy. This was an amazing start.
“But we need to think about coming back sooner rather than later.”
