Fiji's NRL Bid with Commission

The Austral­ian National Rugby League Commission (ARLC) has received Fiji's bid to field a team (franchise club) at the 2026 Australian NRL (Na­tional Rugby League) competition.

This was confirmed yesterday to SUNsports by the Minister of Youth and Sports Jese Saukuru.

"The letter was given (to ARLC) last week Wednesday," Saukuru said.

"We received the verified version of the letter to NRL, and it was ver­ified by the Office of the Solicitor General."

Saukuru said Government sup­ports the Fiji National Rugby League's (FNRL) bid to include a Fiji franchise rugby league club in the NRL.

Saukuru said with Government's support FNRL would be spearhead­ing the bid.

"Papua New Guinea has also shown their interest to bid and Fiji will also be bidding for that spot as well," he said.

"Hopefully, something will come out of it. Like the Fijian Drua, we would love to see something happening with rugby league in Fiji."

Saukuru said the reality of hav­ing a Fiji franchise club in the NRL would create pathways for local­based players and a boost for sports tourism in the country.

"We should create pathways for our players from Fiji to showcase themselves in the international arena," he said.

Meanwhile, according to the Aus­tralia's Wide World of Sports, plans for a secret multi-billion dollar Chinese port in Papua New Guinea will ensure the island nation gets the nod as the NRL's 18th franchise.

Wide World of Sports has learned that the Australian federal government is desperate for the proposed port not to go ahead - for reasons of both national security and trade.

As a result, the Australian gov­ernment is offering PNG its great­est wish, an NRL team to call its own- if it says 'no' to China.

That's the reason the Albanese government has offered PNG a stag­gering AU$600 million (FJ$883.7m) of funding over the next 10 years to help support the proposed team.

"It's nothing about what is best for the NRL - it comes down to the perceived threat of the Chinese on our doorstep," an insider involved in the PNG bid told WWOS.

"The likes of Perth and Central Coast Bears won't get a look-in as a result - the decision has all but been made."

Because of the recent unrest in PNG, the team will be based in the north Queensland city of Cairns, but will play its home matches in Port Moresby.

PNG is the only country that calls league its national sport- but the secret reasons behind its bid and the massive Australian govern­ment funding are certain to upset rival bidders for the 18th franchise, which is expected to be formally endorsed later this year.

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