 | |
| Sport | Rugby league |
|---|---|
| Location | Sydney, New South Wales |
| First meeting | 1908 (1998 NRL) |
| Latest meeting | 2024 |
| Broadcasters | Nine Network |
| Stadiums | Stadium Australia |
| Statistics | |
| Meetings total | 106 |
| Most wins | South Sydney Rabbitohs (17)[1] |
The NRL Grand Final is an annual rugby league match to determine the premiers of every National Rugby League season. It is a major sport event in Australia and regarded as the biggest showcase of rugby league football in the world. Since 1999, it has been contested at Stadium Australia in Sydney.[2] The first year it was held at Stadium Australia, it set a new record for attendance at an Australian rugby league game, with 107,999 people attending.[3]
The two teams that play in the grand final are determined from the preceding finals series, where the top eight finishing teams on the season's premiership ladder qualify in a three-week playoff tournament. The grand final had been played on Saturday afternoons and then Sunday afternoons. From 2001 to 2007, the game was moved to an evening start to make the most of prime time television. Between 2008 and 2012, a compromise was reached between official broadcaster Nine Network's preferred starting time of 7pm and the traditional starting time of 3pm, with the grand final beginning at 5pm AEDT.[4] In 2013, the evening start resumed and has occurred since. Previously, the grand final did not have a set date but, with the exception of 2020, since 2001, it has been played the Sunday falling between 30 September and 6 October, preceding the Labour Day public holiday that falls on the first Monday of October in New South Wales.
The game itself is usually preceded by an opening ceremony featuring a headline musical act, a Welcome to Country, and a rendition of the Australian national anthem sung by well-known Australasian and international artists. The Provan-Summons Trophy, the NRL's premiership trophy, is usually delivered to the field by an Australian Army helicopter shortly before kick off. At the conclusion of the grand final there is a presentation ceremony where the winning team are awarded premiership rings.[5] The player judged to be the man of the match by the selectors of the ARL national team is awarded the prestigious Clive Churchill Medal, and the Prime Minister of Australia is typically available to hand the Provan-Summons Trophy to the winning captain.
In 2019, the Government of New South Wales secured the grand final for Stadium Australia until at least 2046.[6]
- ^ "Grand Finals". Rugby League Tables. Retrieved 8 March 2023.
- ^ "Aussie Stadium". Australian Stadiums. Retrieved 22 January 2007.
... however grand finals were transferred to the much larger Olympic Stadium at Homebush when it opened in 1999.
- ^ "THINGS YOU DIDNT KNOW ABOUT NRL GRAND FINALS OVER 104 YEARS OF RUGBY LEAGUE HISTORY". Foxsports.com.au. Retrieved 25 November 2021.
- ^ "NRL to host a twilight grand final". ABC News. 18 December 2007. Retrieved 12 February 2008.
- ^ "Fellowship of the rings". The Sydney Morning Herald. 8 March 2005.
- ^ "NRL Grand Final to be played at SCG in 2020, 2021 after $12 million deal". News.com.au. 16 October 2019. Retrieved 21 June 2021.