Auckland Rugby League are excited to announce an unprecedented 2023 season of nationwide broadcast coverage, in partnership with The Streamshop and Sky Sport.

Following the current qualifying rounds, ARL will fill two slots, 6pm and 8pm, on the Wednesday Night rugby league schedule with Sky Sport commencing on Wednesday 3rd May. The 6pm match will feature on Sky Sport 4 ahead of NRL360 each Wednesday.

In addition to the Sky Sport coverage, these Wednesday Night games will be streamed as normal on the ARL YouTube channel.

The coverage will feature a split of both the Men’s (Fox Memorial) and Women’s Premiership. Due to the broadcast requirements, games will be moved to the Auckland Stadiums of North Harbour or Mt Smart field 2.

This opportunity will provide a national platform for grassroots rugby league in Tāmaki Makaurau, increasing awareness and exposure. It will also showcase our clubs, players, and community throughout the broadcast slots.

“It’s an amazing opportunity to not only bring grassroots footy to the nation, but also to share the stories of our clubs, players and community”, Rebecca Russell, ARL CEO, said on the Sky Sport partnership.

“We are seeing strong growth in participation and continued growth in our women’s game. We wanted to prioritise getting equal coverage of our Men’s and Women’s Premierships, and to bring this exciting game to a wider audience. With the help of our Clubs and players, we are doing that.”

ARL is working closely with clubs, teams, and other stakeholders to confirm finer details as we lead up to it all kicking off on Wednesday, 3rd May.

Playing on Wednesday will have a short turnaround from the previous Saturday, however teams will receive 10 days recovery before their following Saturday game. Teams will also be given significant notice of at least 3-weeks (where possible) for players and team staff to prepare.