Rugby League analysis: Are games played abroad helping the sport to grow?
A rugby Super League fixture was played in Paris on June 6, and the competition is set to return to Las Vegas for the third time in 2027.
Wigan Warriors took on Catalan Dragons at the Stade Jean Bouin in a commemorative fixture to celebrate 30 years of the Super League.
But with the sport still struggling to grow its domestic audience, the decision to host matches in other countries may not be the way forward, writes Sports News Blitz’s Tom Down.
Domestic success
It can be argued that Wigan Warriors are the most successful club in English rugby league with a vast trophy case that includes 20 Challenge Cups and four League Leaders Shields.
However, the success doesn’t look like it matches the club’s yearly earnings.
Former executive director of Sunderland FC, Charlie Methven, spoke about this on the Business of Sport podcast, which he co-hosts.
He said, “Wigan Warriors are probably the biggest name of all and they have total revenues of £7.5, maybe £8 million this year.
“You’re looking at revenue numbers which probably equate to a top-end League Two club in football.”
Charlie Stebbings, the other co-host, added to this, saying, “That Wigan Warriors number was very close to the conversation I had with Grimsby Town’s CEO, Polly (Bancroft) of £6.9 million.
“With the greatest of respect to Grimsby Town, I don’t think even Grimsby fans would claim that in national sporting terms, they’re on a level with Wigan Warriors.
“Yet their revenues are about the same as Wigan Warriors, so seeing the business side of it is quite eye-opening, the numbers are frightening for the longevity of the game in this country, if it stays in the same form.”
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Matches played abroad
The game played at the Paris FC stadium is just one of the fixtures played abroad in the Super League’s bid to raise awareness and popularity of the sport.
2025 saw the Warriors take on Warrington Wolves in Las Vegas, followed by a matchup in February of this year between Leeds Rhinos and Hull KR.
The Sin City game will continue for its third year in a row in 2027 when Bradford Bulls take on Leigh Leopards.
As well as this, Barcelona’s Camp Nou was home to Catalan Dragons vs Wigan Warriors back in 2019.
The game drew a crowd of over 31,000, which holds the record for the biggest attendance for a Super League fixture.
The problem
Record crowds and popularity in other countries sounds great, but I’d argue that it isn’t what the game needs to become a giant like other sports in England, such as football and rugby union.
These games played abroad can create a lot of hype and excitement, but it just doesn’t seem sustainable.
An American who went to the game and enjoyed it isn’t likely to start booking weekly flights to Wigan, and we’ve seen that teams started in places such as Toronto struggle to have any success themselves.
The game needs more people nearby to gain interest, and when a big match is announced in a city like Paris, only long-lasting fans are going to be taking that flight.
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The solution
Rugby league is a fast-paced and exciting sport to watch, and the way to attract more fans is to show them why they’d enjoy it.
Rather than a big exclusive game that doesn’t seem worth watching for any outsiders, there needs to be more incentives to go and see the sport.
I’m very fond of the games played in big English stadiums like the Challenge Cup final at Wembley, the Grand Final at Old Trafford and the Magic Weekend that sees all teams in the league compete over one weekend in a chosen Premier League Stadium.
These types of games can allow locals to visit the sport for the first time, and if they enjoy it, they may be able to find a local team for them to support.
But the game needs more visibility so that these people can know that rugby league is out there.
With stronger advertisement and communication, we could see more and more people looking out for games, and a big media focus in the build-up to these matches could allow for many more people to tune in.
Rugby league’s brother sport, rugby union, definitely has a hold over a lot of areas in the UK, and it may be worth making a point to their fans that a faster-paced version of the sport is out there, but even then, it would be a struggle to take a lot of the fans and keep them.
So, it would make more sense to strengthen the areas where rugby league is more popular through events, advertising, and reaching out to the local community to inspire them to find their next favourite sport.
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