Brisbane 2.0 must be the next NRL expansion team

Are you kidding? The Broncos have the highest fan base and are the wealthiest club in the NRL. Personally i would like to see 1 central Queensland team, the Western Corridor NRL bid and the West Coast Pirates. This would make the NRL have 19 teams, so they should relegate 3 Sydney teams to the domestic cup of NSW.

Bring on Redcliffe Dolphins, I remember as a kid growing up in a little country town in Central Qld and the dolphins would come up once every couple of years to play a pre season game, everyone loved them! Go Reddy!!

another idea....(if there becomes 18 teams and no team relocates to Central coast) 3 conferences of 6 teams Northern conference (Broncos, Cowboys, titans, new BNE team, Knights & Manly) Southern conference (Storm, roosters, Souths, NZ, Sharks, Dragons) Western conference (Tigers, Eels, Panthers, Raiders, Bulldogs, Perth) Each conference plays H & A within conference (10 games) team 1 from previous year plays other team 1 twice (1 h 1 a 2 games, similar to NFL) then play everyone else once (10 games) first weekend is a super weekend where all games played at 2-3 venues either double/triple headers drawn at random thats 25 games each and enough breaks for rep games

Can't see the Qld govt forking out for yet another stadium in Queensland (though i'm sure Cowboys would appreciate a new stadium in Townsville City. Any Brisbane/Ipswich/SEQ based team would have to play home games at Suncorp. Besides it's literally right on the Ipswich line and they wouldn't need to change trains. And the old ANZ (QSAC as its called now) was the worst place to watch rugby league and was even worse to travel too

The biggest obstacle that has always blocked a 2nd Brisbane Team has always been BBL (Brisbane broncos Limited) and as a shareholder I can see why. They get everything that huge city generates from the game, the real question is how to have a 2nd franchise without the Bronco's (BBL trying to stop it or crush it). Personally I think the only answer is simple, let them own it, would anyone reading this object if it meant a 2nd Brisbane team before this TV deal expires? The Bronco's can keep costs down as they share the same ground, promotions advertising can all be done by the same people, local derby's will be huge revenue raises and if one side is failing and start losing support they still have another source of revenue. Essentially they can just expand their existing administration to perform exactly the same tasks that they are already experts at. This is not a risk for them and it prevents an eventual competitor keeping their market safe with minimal cost increases, guaranteed revenue increases and no real risk (like expansion into another sport would have) with a kind of insurance if the Bronco's go bad. Perhaps I am speaking more as a fan than an investor as Brisbane needs another team but if the Bronco's will block it then there is no point because there is a bid with sound finance, a strong junior base and supporter base with their own stadium called the central coast Bears. They had the best bid in 2005 and have had ever since, if the NRL were not prepared to let them in then they should say that only bids outside NSW will accepted.

I must admit the line that "there are too many AFL teams in Melbourne," isn't usually followed by "disband Collingwood". Brisbane does need a derby though.

Bring back the fukking Bears

16 teams in nrl ... 2 financially strong ... Others basket cases .. Great idea 2 brisbane teams that way another team will dilute broncos finances to bring them back to the field. Lets not find a way to bring other clubs up to brisbane standard. financially strong because one team one city. Maybe something in that!!!!!

That's the stupidest thing I've ever heard! And I've heard some pretty stupid things, like a guy a few months ago saying the NRL should expand to LA! As stated below (and you seem to acknowledge), the Broncos are the most successful team in NRL history and have the most members as well and are the best supported team on TV and Live. But moreover, and perhaps more importantly is that those areas; Redcliffe, Ipswich and Logan, are not part of Brisbane. I'm a bit tired of people not even from here commenting (or who've been here on holidays haha) on these things: get the spelling of Redcliffe and Logan right at least. I have lived all my life in Brisbane and can tell you that they are not part of Brisbane. And Logan does have a CBD at Springwood. I don't identify as being from any of them, and most people I know would be the same. I don't think you people realise that the Brisbane LGA is massive and that the population of that dwarfs those other areas: they wouldn't even compete in numbers if you combined them. But even if you're from the outer north suburbs of Brisbane (where I grew up) you still identify as being from Brisbane and not North Brisbane, or over the border like Pine Rivers or Redcliffe. So no Brisbanite is going to go for a team from those places. If the NRL (or the NSWRL back in the day) brought in 3 teams from these areas they'd either have looked at existing clubs like Valleys and Brothers or go with Brisbane City (i.e. Broncos), South (i.e. Magpies) and either Jets or Dolphins. I think Loganites, Ipswichians and Redcliffians would support a team from Brisbane (they already do in many cases) or especially would go for a team from the area other side of the LGA border like Norths, Souths etc. but it DEFINITELY wouldn't work the other way around.

Brisbane 2 (or Ipswich), Central Coast, NZ2, Perth. Twenty teams, two conferences of 10, be done with it in one swoop and then no more expansion. Failing Sydney teams can relocate to Central Queensland, Adelaide, PNG, or merge, at some point in the future if necessary. No more need to discuss expansion for 50 years.

There is a very brave way to tackle this without dropping Sydney teams and tapping into QRL / Nswrl history whilst admitting all expansion options. Two conferences. 9 teams in each. Conference A 3 current qld teams, nz warriors, South Island team, Melbourne, another qld team (who ever won previous years QRL) Perth and Canberra. Conference B The rest of the current NRL ( all NSW teams) Winner of each conference play off in The GF each year. Wooden spooners get relegated to local QRL or NSWRL comps each year. Winners of QRL/NSWRL get promoted each year. Any new expansion eg. A PNG team or central coast could be born in the QRL/NSWRL comps at some pt after this initial establishment season.

No. Lets call them the North Sydney/Brisbane Devil Bears. They can play half their games in north Sydney and half in the Toombul shopping centre car park. Go you Devil Bears.

Its such a no brainer, I think the decision is more advanced than people expect. Though the NRL would never (this version of the NRL not the old one) not do a due diligence process. I am going to go out on a limb and say a new team could happen as early as 2016, so that by the time the new tv deal is being hammered out, they have it in their pocket RE: figures. I think then that a 2nd team could be added in 2017, that could/would be Perth, and doing it this way you get the first year bumper ratings/interest factored in at its height, before too much wrong to go on is possible, ect. Thats for the newest expansion team, the Bris2 team will be popular either way. Of course they could just do it differently, talk of expansion being fast tracked isn't new, but even if they wait - it will be worth the wait. I dont think they will ever pull out of NZ, that suggestion is just not on the table. NZ is doing well in league; long term its strategically critical, and short term NZ could find themselves in the GF again very shortly

Maybe they could play out of Old anz and only play blockbuster games at Suncorp such as vs broncos cowboys and titans?

Of course Brisbane needs a second team, a game every week in Brisbane is a no brainer. I also think the NRL need to decide whether to pull out of New Zealand or add one or two teams across the Tasman

I guess we will find out when they do the review this year. They will obtain a whole raft of figures pertaining to this. It may confirm what we think we know/suspect, or it may be different. Here are my thoughts, and remember I am a big broncos fan. :: The next team in should be Brisbane, then Perth; but they won't bring them in until the current clubs are on sound financial footing. By 2017 this should well and truly be the case. 1 The team needs to play out of Suncorp stadium. 2 No current bid team is fully capable in my opinion. I think a couple need to join together....if the ARLC is inclined (and I think it would be helpful to try), they should get them all together in one room or however they want to do it, state what is needed, and see who can deliver what; this needs to be lead by a consortium. If this can be sorted out without all the hand-on, great, if not, the ARLC needs to step in. Such a thing would be played out in the media, so I would like it if the ARLC stated exactly what they wanted. I think many of the goals are mutual, but there is no combined effort as of yet. 3. I think its imperative it needs to include the Brothers group of Clubs, and that the bid team has the support of the rich Ipswich Brothers leagues club, that to the best of my knowledge the current brothers bid does not possess. 4 I think there can be no compromises on this. Some work will need to be done, but if they are all itching at the bit to get a team, then joining their bids and forming a consortium, around which the ARLC can stipulate some immovable terms, then they should not have a problem. 4a All ties, loyalties and affiliations of any one to any previously involved bid must cease to exist in this new consortium. 5 They can call the team Ipswich, Ipswich/Logan or South Brisbane, but it can't be Brisbane; if they do call it Ipswich-[ect], it will have instant support from that massive area (granted Ipswich city is small, but many people identify with the area, and understand it all across brisbane; ditto anything 'south side') They will gain an instant rivalry, the match of any other in the country. In time such a rivalry will be more intensive, fierce, lucrative, and embraced than any other rivalry the broncos have. 6 The club should be based in Ipswich/Logan and should embrace the community 7 Getting to suncorp from Ipswich/Logan is mostly no different from people who attend Suncorp from Redcliffe in Brisbane's north. __ A second Brisbane team will be very different to the Crushers who came in during the 90s. Times have changed, the landscape has changed, the people and the game have changed. A new team won't have the effect of diluting support - this will only make support stronger, wider, and more passionate and intense for rugby league, for all concerned. It will gather further sponsors who currently can't associate with or are unable to sponsor the broncos. The broncos may lose some supporters to begin with, big deal. They'll get over it. This is bigger than just being about the broncos; in fact the broncos stand to benefit in aggregate over time. More juniors will come into the game, there will be more interest in the game, and there will be more money coming into the game via sponsors and corporate. I firmly believe an Ipswich/Logan club will be one of the biggest in Australian Sport within 10 years. This genuinely has the potential to be massive..... this will make people pick sides, this will divide the city along lines, this will hot-up the involvement of the entire community, from people, to corporations, to sponsors, and tv. This is not a dilution, this is an "enrichment" ...and whats more, its success in the league would help outweigh some of the financial strain of a Perth side. Should Brisbane be the next team admitted ahead of Perth? Yes, if it comes to that. Of course the benefits of a successful Perth side are not small either.

Glen the fact is that those Sydney clubs are still around when teams like the Western Reds, Adelaide Rams and South Queensland Crushers have come and gone.Lets not get ahead of ourselves as where not quite at the stage where we can cull teams and be guaranteed all new franchisers will work.I'm constantly reading that there is to many Sydney teams but without them the big Broadcasting dollars that bank role the competition would not be there.

KFC - The problem is it is hard to get solid private investment in an industry that loses money.The Broncos with all the massive advantages they have (a monolopy over over a plus two million market where League is if not dominant certainly the number ONE show in town) are the only club that make consistent money... most are just an exercise in red ink every year. Even then The Broncos have never really struggled on the field for a few consecutive seasons for a variety of reasons. So we do not really know what kind of base support they actually have. If they hit a real rough patch like The Brisbane Lions have over the last few years what kind of revenue will they raise and will they still be making money?I wouldn't buy shares in them given the possIbilty the NRL may end their monoply at some Stage combined with the above... and they are "blue chip" by NRL standards. Finding private money to invest in ownership of NRL clubs (as opposed to sponsoring them) is never going to be easy..it has happened with The Storm but I am willing to bet they will regret it - they have bought into a market they think they understand but they don't. The point of all this is The NRL are probab;y going to have to wear the financial risk involved in any new franchises as they will be lucky to find reliable private money willing to do so (and even if they do if things turn ugly it will be The NRL left with the wreckage just like the AFL with Brisbane post Christopher Skase)- so they need to look very closely before they leap.

Of course Brisbane needs a 2nd NRL Club - the real question is whether that team should be run by a newly formed club or an existing club from the Queensland Cup. When the AFL expanded in SA and WA, 3 of the new club were created from scratch (West Coast, Adelaide and Freemantle) but the 4th club (Port Adelaide) was promoted from the SANFL with an existing fan-base.

Perth would be a good location but the NRLs pockets would have to be very deep as the cost will be huge.