Las Vegas schedule to be shrunk in 2026 as hint on Super League involvement dropped
Super League is experiencing a boom already from Las Vegas.
Next year’s Las Vegas event looks likely to be shorter in size with three games instead of four: but Super League will still likely be included, according to Peter V’landys.
The NRL doubled the number of matches on show this year compared to last, with four games taking place: two NRL fixtures, an historic Super League showdown between Wigan Warriors and Warrington Wolves as well as a one-sided women’s Test between Australia and England.
That led to an almost ten-hour event from start to finish and unlike at Magic Weekend in the UK, fans were unable to come in and out of Allegiant Stadium as they wanted. Once you were inside, you couldn’t come in and out until you chose to leave – with no re-admissions.
And that left V’landys admitting to reporters in the aftermath of the event that it is likely the event will be shrunk in 2026.
He said: “I think four was too long. You could tell because the fans left their seats and when their game was over, there’s empty seats. You want them to stay there and if you’d had three games, they would have.
“It’s a long day with four games. I got there at 1pm and left at 11pm, and as passionate as I am about rugby league, it’s a long day.”
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However, any fears that Super League could be the game to drop off the schedule next year appear to be wide of the mark, as V’landys insisted the NRL want to strengthen their bond with the competition after almost 10,000 fans made the trip to Vegas.
“You want to shorten it a bit but we want to keep the Super League partnership because it worked really well and generated a new atmosphere and vibe I’ve never seen before,” he said.
When asked if that meant the women’s game would be the one to miss out, V’landys said: “We’ll go home and do a post-mortem.
“I’m the biggest supporter of the women’s game and I don’t want to discount them out.”
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