The
Australian Rugby League (ARL) is the governing body for the sport of
rugby league in AustraliaRugby league football is one of the most popular sports in Australia. It is the dominant winter sport on the eastern seaboard of Australia, including the states of New South Wales and Queensland as well as the Australian Capital Territory, which together comprise around half of the country's...
. It is made up of state bodies, including the
New South Wales Rugby LeagueThe New South Wales Rugby League is the governing body of rugby league in New South Wales and is a member of the Australian Rugby League. It was formed in Sydney on 8 August 1907 and was known as the New South Wales Rugby Football League until 1984 when forward thinking marketing managers decided...
(NSWRL) and the
Queensland Rugby LeagueThe Queensland Rugby Football League is the governing body for rugby league in Queensland. It is a member of the Australian Rugby League and selects the members of Queensland State of Origin teams....
(QRL). The ARL Board comprises three members from the NSWRL, three members from the QRL and a chairman who holds the casting vote.
Since its inception the ARL has administered the Australian national team and represented Australia in international rugby league matters. During the
Super League warThe Super League war is the common name given to the corporate dispute that was fought in and out of court during the mid-1990s between the Rupert Murdoch and News Corporation-backed Super League and the Kerry Packer and Optus Vision-backed Australian Rugby League organisations over broadcasting...
of the mid-1990s the ARL also administered Australia's club premiership until the
National Rugby LeagueThe National Rugby League is the top league of professional rugby league football clubs in Australasia. The NRL's main competition, called the Telstra Premiership , is contested by sixteen teams, fifteen of which are based in Australia with one based in New Zealand...
was formed.
It is anticipated that, from 2012, the newly restructured Australian Rugby League will resume full control of administering the code of Rugby League in Australia. As part of the process for the formation of an independent commission to run the game, the Board of the Australian Rugby League and
News LimitedNews Limited is one of Australia's largest diversified media companies. The publicly listed company's interests span newspaper and magazine publishing, Internet, Pay TV, National Rugby League, market research, DVD and film distribution, and film and television production trading assets.News Limited...
, will hand control to the restructured body. As at July 2011, negotiations to this effect are nearing completion.
1924–94: Control of international matters
The
Australian Rugby League Board of Control (later the Australian Rugby League) was formed in December 1924 to administer the running of the national team. George Ball was the first secretary of the Board and John La Maro the first chairman. Prior to this time, international rugby league was organised by both the NSWRL and the QRL. It was only after this time that the Australian team began to wear the now familiar sporting colours of Green and Gold. During this period it as known as the ARFL, (Australian Rugby Football League).
Until 1984 the ARL was run by the NSWRL, and many Queensland players and administrators throughout this period believed that the NSWRL used this power to the detriment of Queenslanders, especially with respect to national team selection. The ARL was duly incorporated, as a separate entity, and
Ken ArthursonKenneth Richard "Arko" Arthurson AM is an Australian rugby league football identity. Affectionately known as "The Godfather of Manly", he played, coached and was later an administrator at the Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles club of the New South Wales Rugby League premiership...
was the first executive chairman of the new body.
1995–97: Control of the first-grade competition
The premier first-grade rugby league competition in Australia had been run by the
New South Wales Rugby LeagueThe New South Wales Rugby League is the governing body of rugby league in New South Wales and is a member of the Australian Rugby League. It was formed in Sydney on 8 August 1907 and was known as the New South Wales Rugby Football League until 1984 when forward thinking marketing managers decided...
from the first season in 1908 until the end of 1994. With further expansion of the competition nationwide implemented for the 1995 season the NSWRL passed, to the ARL, control of the
Winfield CupThe Winfield Cup was an Australian rugby league trophy awarded to the winner of the New South Wales Rugby League premiership's Grand Final from 1982 to 1994, and to the winner of the Australian Rugby League Grand Final in 1995...
competition, following the inclusion of teams from
PerthPerth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia and the fourth most populous city in Australia. The Perth metropolitan area has an estimated population of almost 1,700,000....
,
TownsvilleTownsville is a city on the north-eastern coast of Australia, in the state of Queensland. Adjacent to the central section of the Great Barrier Reef, it is in the dry tropics region of Queensland. Townsville is Australia's largest urban centre north of the Sunshine Coast, with a 2006 census...
and
AucklandThe Auckland metropolitan area , in the North Island of New Zealand, is the largest and most populous urban area in the country with residents, percent of the country's population. Auckland also has the largest Polynesian population of any city in the world...
.
Following
Kerry PackerKerry Francis Bullmore Packer, AC was an Australian media tycoon. The son of Sir Frank Packer and Gretel Bullmore, the Packer family company owned controlling interest in both the Nine television network and leading Australian publishing company Australian Consolidated Press, which were later...
's announcement that his
Optus VisionOptus Television is the cable television division of Australian telecommunications company Optus.-History:Its immediate predecessor was Optus Vision, a joint venture between, Optus and Continental Cablevision with small shareholdings by media companies Publishing and Broadcasting Limited and Seven...
company owned both free-to-air and pay television broadcasting rights for the sport in Australia,
News CorporationNews Corporation or News Corp. is an American multinational media conglomerate. It is the world's second-largest media conglomerate as of 2011 in terms of revenue, and the world's third largest in entertainment as of 2009, although the BBC remains the world's largest broadcaster...
, controlled by
Rupert MurdochKeith Rupert Murdoch, AC, KSG is an Australian-American business magnate. He is the founder and Chairman and CEO of , the world's second-largest media conglomerate....
, undertook a bold bid to create a rival competition,
Super League (Australia)Super League was an Australian rugby league football administrative body that conducted professional competition in Australasia for one season in 1997. Along with Super League of Europe, it was created by News Corporation during the Super League war which arose following an unsuccessful attempt to...
. Super League successfully attracted eight of the ARL clubs.
In the
State of OriginState of Origin is an annual best of three series of rugby league football matches contested by the Maroons and the Blues, who represent the Australian states of Queensland and New South Wales respectively...
series of 1995, the ARL forbade the players of those eight clubs from participating in the interstate competition. However, those clubs were allowed to participate in the premiership seasons of 1995 and 1996, while the ARL fought in the courtroom to stop the Super League competition from eventuating. However,
Super LeagueSuper League was an Australian rugby league football administrative body that conducted professional competition in Australasia for one season in 1997. Along with Super League of Europe, it was created by News Corporation during the Super League war which arose following an unsuccessful attempt to...
conducted a
rival competition in 1997The 1997 Super League season was the 90th season of professional rugby league football in Australia and the first and only to be run by the News Limited-controlled Super League organisation...
.
Both the ARL and Super League competitions ran parallel to each other that year. At the close of the season, despite having the financial backing of
OptusSingTel Optus Pty Limited is the second largest telecommunications company in Australia, and is a wholly owned subsidiary of Singapore Telecommunications...
, the ARL decided that it was not in the best interests of the game to run two competitions and undertook moves to approach News Corporation and invite the traditional clubs back into the main competition. As a consequence of the negotiations that followed, the
National Rugby LeagueThe National Rugby League is the top league of professional rugby league football clubs in Australasia. The NRL's main competition, called the Telstra Premiership , is contested by sixteen teams, fifteen of which are based in Australia with one based in New Zealand...
was formed before the 1998 season from the ARL and Super League competitions.
Australian Rugby League premiers
| Season |
Grand Final Information |
Minor Premiers |
| Premiers |
Score |
Runners-Up |
1995The 1995 ARL premiership was the 88th season of professional rugby league football in Australia, and the first to be run by the Australian Rugby League. For the first time since 1988, the League expanded again, with the addition of four new clubs from North Queensland, Western Australia, South...
|
 Sydney Bulldogs |
17–4 |
Manly-WarringahThe Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles are an Australian professional rugby league club based on the Northern Beaches of Sydney. They compete in the National Rugby League's Telstra Premiership, the premier rugby league competition of Australasia...
|
Manly-WarringahThe Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles are an Australian professional rugby league club based on the Northern Beaches of Sydney. They compete in the National Rugby League's Telstra Premiership, the premier rugby league competition of Australasia...
|
1996The 1996 ARL premiership was the 89th season of professional rugby league football in Australia, and the second to be run by the Australian Rugby League...
|
Manly-WarringahThe Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles are an Australian professional rugby league club based on the Northern Beaches of Sydney. They compete in the National Rugby League's Telstra Premiership, the premier rugby league competition of Australasia...
|
20–8 |
 St. GeorgeThe St George Dragons was an Australian Rugby league football club in St George, Sydney, New South Wales that played in Australia's top-level Rugby league competition from New South Wales Rugby Football League in 1921 until 1998; in 1999 they formed a joint venture with the Illawarra Steelers,...
|
Manly-WarringahThe Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles are an Australian professional rugby league club based on the Northern Beaches of Sydney. They compete in the National Rugby League's Telstra Premiership, the premier rugby league competition of Australasia...
|
1997The 1997 Australian Rugby League season was the 90th season of professional rugby league football in Australia, and the third season run by the Australian Rugby League...
|
 Newcastle KnightsThe Newcastle Knights are an Australian professional rugby league football club based in Newcastle, New South Wales. They compete in Australasia's premier rugby league competition, the National Rugby League premiership...
|
22–16 |
Manly-WarringahThe Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles are an Australian professional rugby league club based on the Northern Beaches of Sydney. They compete in the National Rugby League's Telstra Premiership, the premier rugby league competition of Australasia...
|
Manly-WarringahThe Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles are an Australian professional rugby league club based on the Northern Beaches of Sydney. They compete in the National Rugby League's Telstra Premiership, the premier rugby league competition of Australasia...
|
1998–2011
The ARL remains responsible for administering all aspects of the game of rugby league in Australia and conducting representative rugby league matches including,
State of OriginState of Origin is an annual best of three series of rugby league football matches contested by the Maroons and the Blues, who represent the Australian states of Queensland and New South Wales respectively...
competition, the New South Wales City-Country competition and the national team, the
Kangaroos.
The Australian Rugby League's major elite competition in Australia, the
National Rugby LeagueThe National Rugby League is the top league of professional rugby league football clubs in Australasia. The NRL's main competition, called the Telstra Premiership , is contested by sixteen teams, fifteen of which are based in Australia with one based in New Zealand...
(NRL), is conducted as a partnership with
News LimitedNews Limited is one of Australia's largest diversified media companies. The publicly listed company's interests span newspaper and magazine publishing, Internet, Pay TV, National Rugby League, market research, DVD and film distribution, and film and television production trading assets.News Limited...
as a result of the events following the
Super League warThe Super League war is the common name given to the corporate dispute that was fought in and out of court during the mid-1990s between the Rupert Murdoch and News Corporation-backed Super League and the Kerry Packer and Optus Vision-backed Australian Rugby League organisations over broadcasting...
of 1995–1997.
2012-
The
National Rugby LeagueThe National Rugby League is the top league of professional rugby league football clubs in Australasia. The NRL's main competition, called the Telstra Premiership , is contested by sixteen teams, fifteen of which are based in Australia with one based in New Zealand...
, as of 2011, is administered under a partnership agreement between the Australian Rugby League and News Limited. While final negotiations are underway, it is expected that from before the start of the 2012 Rugby League season, this partnership will be dissolved.
Under the plan agreed in principle by both current partners of the
National Rugby LeagueThe National Rugby League is the top league of professional rugby league football clubs in Australasia. The NRL's main competition, called the Telstra Premiership , is contested by sixteen teams, fifteen of which are based in Australia with one based in New Zealand...
competition, the Australian Rugby League will not be wound up. Rather, the same body will undergo a corporate restructure, and the same legal entity will become the independent commission - thus maintaining continuity and tradition in terms of the game's administration, since 1924.
All clubs in the current NRL premiership will become voting members of the ARL Commission, along with the
New South Wales Rugby LeagueThe New South Wales Rugby League is the governing body of rugby league in New South Wales and is a member of the Australian Rugby League. It was formed in Sydney on 8 August 1907 and was known as the New South Wales Rugby Football League until 1984 when forward thinking marketing managers decided...
and the
Queensland Rugby LeagueThe Queensland Rugby Football League is the governing body for rugby league in Queensland. It is a member of the Australian Rugby League and selects the members of Queensland State of Origin teams....
. Eight independent Commissioners have been selected and publicly announced. They are:
John GrantJohn Grant is an Australian businessman, rugby league football administrator and former player of the 1970s. A Queensland interstate representative three-quarter back, he was a member of the Australia national rugby league team which lost the 1972 World Cup to Great Britain in France...
, who was a member of Australia's 1972 World Cup team squad and heads the IT company Data#3;
Harris Farm MarketsHarris Farm Markets is an Australian grocery chain with 18 different locations and 800 employees. The supermarkets specialise in fruit, vegetables, delicatessen, and other grocery items.-History:...
chairwoman and founder Catherine Harris;
Brand strategist Ian Elliot;
Leighton HoldingsLeighton Holdings is Australia's largest project development and contracting group. It is active in the telecommunications, engineering and infrastructure, building and property, mining and resources, and environmental services industries...
executive director and chief financial officer
Peter GreggPeter Gregg may refer to:* Peter Gregg , auto racing driver* Peter Gregg , guitarist who played for the predecessor to Devo...
;
Former Qantas Airways and SOCOG chairman Gary Pemberton;
CSRCSR Limited is a major Australian industrial company, producing aluminium and building products. It is publicly traded on the Australian Securities Exchange. In 2009, it has approximately 10,000 employees and during a period of a major cyclical downturn the company made an after-tax profit of...
chairman Jeremy Sutcliffe;
League great and management consultant
Wayne PearceWayne John Pearce OAM is an Australian former rugby league footballer and coach. An athletic Lock Forward for the Balmain Tigers, he was affectionately known as 'Junior'...
, and;
Indigenous education leader Dr Chris Sarra.
As at July 2011, it is believed that the only remaining legal obstacle to the ARL Commission being officially declared, is the request by the NRL clubs that
News LimitedNews Limited is one of Australia's largest diversified media companies. The publicly listed company's interests span newspaper and magazine publishing, Internet, Pay TV, National Rugby League, market research, DVD and film distribution, and film and television production trading assets.News Limited...
agrees that it will not establish a rival,
Super LeagueSuper League is the top-level professional rugby league football club competition in Europe. As a result of sponsorship from engage Mutual Assurance the competition is currently officially known as the engage Super League. The League features fourteen teams: thirteen from England and one from...
style premiership to the new independent premiership.
It has yet to be decided if, in line with the restructure, the premiership competition itself will be rebranded as the
Australian Rugby LeagueThe Australian Rugby League is the governing body for the sport of rugby league in Australia. It is made up of state bodies, including the New South Wales Rugby League and the Queensland Rugby League...
, or will retain the current title, the
National Rugby LeagueThe National Rugby League is the top league of professional rugby league football clubs in Australasia. The NRL's main competition, called the Telstra Premiership , is contested by sixteen teams, fifteen of which are based in Australia with one based in New Zealand...
.
ARL Development
ARL Development is a non-profit company formed by the ARL to develop the sport from an introductory level to the age of 18 years. In achieving this, ARL Development has developed new modified codes that gradually introduce children to rugby league. This is done by restricting the rules and then gradually releasing these restrictions.
The two introductory modified codes currently in use are
mini footyMini footy is a form of rugby league developed by the Australian Rugby League. It was developed to introduce children to rugby league....
and
mod leagueMod league is a form of rugby league developed by the Australian Rugby League. It was developed to introduce children to rugby league.Mod league follows on from mini footy; it introduces laws more common to the full international laws of rugby league, whilst also keeping the theme of being an...
. On completion of mod league, players make a move to full international
rugby league lawsThe laws of rugby league, officially the Laws of the Game, are the laws governing the game of rugby league football. The Laws apply to the play, officiating, equipment and procedures of the sport. The Laws are the responsibility of the Rugby League International Federation.Rugby league governing...
.
Affiliated states
- Northern Territory Rugby League
The Northern Territory Rugby League is responsible for administering the game of rugby league in the Northern Territory. It controls the Darwin Rugby League, Darwin Junior Rugby League and the Central Australian Rugby Football League....
- South Australian Rugby League
-External links:**...
- Tasmanian Rugby League
The Tasmanian Rugby League is responsible for administering the game of rugby league in the Australian state of Tasmania. Tasmania is an Affiliated State of the overall Australian governing body the Australian Rugby League....
- Victorian Rugby League
The Victorian Rugby League is responsible for administering the game of rugby league in the Australian state of Victoria. Victoria is an Affiliated State of the overall Australian governing body the Australian Rugby League...
- Western Australia Rugby League
The Western Australia Rugby League is responsible for administering the game of rugby league in Western Australia. Western Australia is an Affiliated State of the overall Australian governing body the Australian Rugby League....
Affiliated leagues
- Australian Secondary Schools Rugby League
- Australian Universities Rugby League
- School Sports Australia
- Australian Police Rugby League Association
- Australian Women's Rugby League
Affiliated States Championship
The Affiliated States Championship is an annual competition run by the Australian Rugby League involving the four affiliated states (Victoria, South Australia, Northern Territory and Western Australia) plus the Australian Police and
Australian Defence ForceThe Australian Defence Force is the military organisation responsible for the defence of Australia. It consists of the Royal Australian Navy , Australian Army, Royal Australian Air Force and a number of 'tri-service' units...
.
See also
- Australian national team
- Australian Rugby League Hall of Fame
The Australian Rugby League Hall of Fame honors players who have shown exceptional skill at rugby league, all-time great coaches and referees, and other major contributors to the game who are Australian...
- National Rugby League
The National Rugby League is the top league of professional rugby league football clubs in Australasia. The NRL's main competition, called the Telstra Premiership , is contested by sixteen teams, fifteen of which are based in Australia with one based in New Zealand...
- State of Origin
State of Origin is an annual best of three series of rugby league football matches contested by the Maroons and the Blues, who represent the Australian states of Queensland and New South Wales respectively...
External links