Shock plot to stage NRL's biggest spectacle in rugby union stronghold

One of Australia’s greatest sporting spectacles could soon cross the Tasman. A group led by former Queensland coach Sir Graham Lowe has announced “well-advanced plans” to bring the State of Origin series to New Zealand for the first time in its history.

Although New Zealand has traditionally been a dyed-in-the-wool rugby union nation, Lowe believes there is an appetite for rugby league’s biggest day out.

Lowe, who guided the Maroons in 1991, says the plan to host a clash between New South Wales and Queensland has the support of New Zealand Sports Minister Mark Mitchell, and an official bid will be presented to the NRL early next month.

With Christchurch’s new Te Kaha stadium set to open in 2026, he believes it could be an ideal venue and says the stadium management is also behind the push.

“We haven’t had talks with the NRL itself yet, so that’s the next stage. We just want to get the timing right,” told Radio New Zealand.

However, the question of which stadium can best handle the occasion remains. Te Kaha will seat around 30,000 for sporting events, Wellington’s Sky Stadium holds 34,500, and Auckland’s Eden Park’s 50,000 is the country’s largest. That still falls short of the massive crowds at Sydney’s Accor Stadium (77k), the Melbourne Cricket Ground (90k), and Brisbane’s Suncorp Stadium (52k), which hosted the 2024 State of Origin series.

The NRL usually takes one game of the three-match series to a neutral venue, with contracts in place for Melbourne and Perth. The earliest opportunity to host a match in New Zealand would likely be in 2027.

“Origin is a really uniquely special sporting event, it gets watched really closely by many people here in New Zealand and I just know that if the game itself is here in this country, it will be a sporting event like few other we have ever seen in the history of sport in New Zealand.”

A report in Australia’s Daily Telegraph claimed that the event could generate as much as AUD€100m per game.

“State of Origin brings along an excitement package really that can’t be rivalled. I just think it’s a unique thing and if we can get it across the line the country will be better off for it.”

Lowe is confident that the prospect of taking the series offshore won’t deter the Australian players, either: “They will play it on the beach if you want them to. They just love representing, it doesn’t matter where it is, they’ll just go out and still put on exactly the same show.”

For now, Lowe’s group continues to gather support in rugby league circles, claiming the passion Kiwis have always shown for State of Origin will help make the historic plan a reality.

Lowe was a leading figure in the Southern Orcas group, a consortium formed in the mid-2000s to pursue a second New Zealand-based NRL franchise, aiming to locate the team primarily in Wellington (with potential links to Christchurch).

The group—made up of business figures, rugby league stakeholders, and local supporters—proposed the ‘Orcas’ brand in reference to the orca whales commonly found off New Zealand’s coast. Despite enthusiasm and some initial backing, the project ultimately did not secure an NRL license.