Magic Round (NRL)
The National Rugby League's Magic Round is a weekend where all fixtures are played at one venue. The concept is derived from Super League's Magic Weekend.[1] The first Magic Round, in 2019, was held at Brisbane's Lang Park, in the ninth round of the season, from 9 to 12 May. The Government of Queensland paid approximately $2.1 million per year for the event to be held in the city in 2019 and 2020.[2]
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History
England's Super League first held its Magic Weekend in Cardiff, Wales, in 2007, in part as a bid to promote rugby league there.[3] The event has been repeated on an annual basis, staged also in Edinburgh, Manchester, Newcastle upon Tyne and Liverpool. The second-tier Championship followed in 2015 with the Summer Bash, a full round of fixtures that in that year and each subsequent year have been played in Blackpool.
The NRL first announced a Magic Round in 2018, for the 2019 season. It selected Brisbane as the host for 2019 and 2021, with the NRL having the option to continue to hold the event there in 2022 and 2023. The hosting arrangements included an investment from the Government of Queensland.[4] The NRL declared the 2019 event, held from 9 to 12 May, to be a success; the total attendance for the weekend was 134,677.[5]
The second Magic Round was scheduled to be held in May 2020, but was cancelled due to the ongoing impact of the COVID-19 pandemic which affected the 2020 NRL season.[6]
After the success of the second Magic Round in 2021, it was announced that the event would be returning to Brisbane in 2022.[7]
In 2022, the Australian Football League announced its first Magic Round called Gather Round for Round 5 of the 2023 season.[8] Instead of a single venue, multiple venues in a single state are used. South Australia won the bid for the inaugural Gather Round ahead of New South Wales.[9]
2019: Brisbane
Team | Score | Team | Date and Time | Attendance | Broadcaster |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
![]() |
18–26 | ![]() |
Thursday 9 May 19:50 |
17,113 | Nine Network Fox League |
![]() |
30–4 | ![]() |
Friday 10 May 18:00 |
41,388 | Fox League |
![]() |
10–26 | ![]() |
Friday 10 May 20:05 |
Nine Network Fox League | |
![]() |
10–22 | ![]() |
Saturday 11 May 15:00 |
41,612 | Fox League |
![]() |
26–18 | ![]() |
Saturday 11 May 17:30 |
Fox League | |
![]() |
64–10 | ![]() |
Saturday 11 May 19:35 |
Fox League | |
![]() |
30–24 | ![]() |
Sunday 12 May 14:00 |
34,564 | Fox League |
![]() |
32–16 | ![]() |
Sunday 12 May 16:05 |
Nine Network Fox League |
2021: Brisbane
Team | Score | Team | Date and Time | Attendance | Broadcaster |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
![]() |
36–18 | ![]() |
Friday 14 May 18:00 |
41,367 | Fox League |
![]() |
50–6 | ![]() |
Friday 14 May 20:05 |
Nine Network Fox League | |
![]() |
18–20 | ![]() |
Saturday 15 May 15:00 |
45,115 | Fox League |
![]() |
22–32 | ![]() |
Saturday 15 May 17:30 |
Fox League | |
![]() |
30–16 | ![]() |
Saturday 15 May 19:45 |
Nine Network Fox League | |
![]() |
18–34 | ![]() |
Sunday 16 May 13:50 |
43,537 | Fox League |
![]() |
44–18 | ![]() |
Sunday 16 May 16:05 |
Nine Network Fox League | |
![]() |
12–48 | ![]() |
Sunday 16 May 18:25 |
Fox League |
2022: Brisbane
Team | Score | Team | Date and Time | Attendance | Broadcaster |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
![]() |
6 – 16 | ![]() |
Friday 13 May 18:00 |
40,267 | Fox League |
![]() |
0 – 38 | ![]() |
Friday 13 May 20:05 |
Nine Network Fox League | |
![]() |
30 – 32 | ![]() |
Saturday 14 May 15:00 |
46,454 | Fox League |
![]() |
20 – 16 | ![]() |
Saturday 14 May 17:30 |
Fox League | |
![]() |
6 – 32 | ![]() |
Saturday 14 May 19:45 |
Nine Network Fox League | |
![]() |
10 – 30 | ![]() |
Sunday 15 May 13:50 |
43,401 | Fox League |
![]() |
31 – 24 | ![]() |
Sunday 15 May 16:05 |
Nine Network Fox League | |
![]() |
12 – 36 | ![]() |
Sunday 15 May 18:25 |
Fox League |
2023: Brisbane
Team | Score | Team | Date and Time | Attendance | Broadcaster |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
![]() |
30 – 34 | ![]() |
Friday 5 May 18:00 |
50,077 | Fox League |
![]() |
6 – 32 | ![]() |
Friday 5 May 20:05 |
Nine Network Fox League | |
![]() |
6 – 18 | ![]() |
Saturday 6 May 15:00 |
50,183 | Fox League |
![]() |
16 – 36 | ![]() |
Saturday 6 May 17:30 |
Fox League | |
![]() |
12 – 28 | ![]() |
Saturday 6 May 19:45 |
Nine Network Fox League | |
![]() |
18 – 16 | ![]() |
Sunday 7 May 13:50 |
46,845 | Fox League |
![]() |
6 – 20 | ![]() |
Sunday 7 May 16:05 |
Nine Network Fox League | |
![]() |
26 – 24 | ![]() |
Sunday 7 May 18:25 |
Fox League |
Bye: Newcastle Knights
Yearly Attendances
Year | City | Stadium | Days | Total Attendance | Average Daily Attendance |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
2019 | Brisbane | Suncorp Stadium | 4 | 134,677 | 33,669 |
2020 | Cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. | ||||
2021 | 3 | ![]() |
![]() | ||
2022 | 3 | ![]() |
![]() | ||
2023 | 3 | ![]() |
![]() | ||
2024 | 3 |
See also
References
- Proszenko, Adrian (9 May 2019). "NSW keen to poach Magic Round from Queensland". Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 3 August 2019.
- Polkinghorne, David (10 May 2019). "New Civic Stadium would enhance Canberra's Magic Round chances". Canberra Times. Retrieved 3 August 2019.
- Shea, Julian (1 May 2007). "Rugby league looks to new horizon". BBC Sport. Retrieved 4 August 2019.
- Webster, Andrew (8 May 2019). "From Bris Vegas to Las Vegas: the NRL's bold ambitions for Magic Round". Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 4 August 2019.
- Lutton, Phil (12 May 2019). "Magic Round tricks every box as crowds respond to Brisbane event". Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 4 August 2019.
- "NRL cancels Magic Round Brisbane 2020". NRL.com. 27 March 2020. Retrieved 27 March 2020.
- Layt, Stuart (16 May 2007). "NRL Magic Round to stay in Brisbane in 2022 but after that it's anyone's game". Brisbane Times. Retrieved 17 May 2021.
- "'Gather Round ... A Festival of Footy' is headed to South Australia". Australian Football League. 9 December 2022. Archived from the original on 13 December 2022. Retrieved 13 December 2022.
- "Dom fires up in AFL war of words after SA's 'sloppy seconds' Sydney whack". Seven Network. 11 November 2022. Archived from the original on 26 November 2022. Retrieved 13 December 2022.
External links
- https://www.nrl.com/news/2018/06/17/nrl-brisbane-magic-round-to-be-staged-in-2019-at-suncorp-stadium/
- https://www.nrl.com/news/2018/10/25/sunday-derbies-magic-weekend-headline-2019-draw/
- https://www.nrl.com/news/2019/04/01/magic-acts-for-nrl-magic-round-brisbane/
- https://www.nrl.com/travel/magic-round/
- https://www.foxsports.com.au/nrl/nrl-premiership/nrl-to-stage-magic-round-in-2019/news-story/ff125411f0a80e100cd6cfc4143b4867
- https://suncorpstadium.com.au/The-Venue/Latest-News/NRL-Brisbane-Magic-Round.aspx