The clubs were also told Rugby League Central was close to securing a new free-to-air deal,understood to be with the Nine network,the publishers of this masthead. The NRL will scale back its own digital department,a process that began on Wednesday when staff were informed there would be redundancies,given it was considered a competitor to the existing broadcasters.
The NRL was able to post a strong financial return,despite the challenge of relocation and other coronavirus-related expenses,by cutting costs by $55 million. It meant the game didn’t have to borrow money during the pandemic,allowing clubs to be funded at their highest levels at a time when the AFL is cutting back its distributions to stakeholders.