Rugby has entered the chat, and Las Vegas!

Rugby has entered the U.S. and is here to stay ––if that get it right, that is 👀 🏉

Early 2025, I was back at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas for the National Rugby League’s second annual season opener. This time, it wasn’t just a game, it was a full-blown cultural experience and experiment.

Four matches. A four-day fan festival. Live music on Fremont Street. A combination of the U.S. men’s and women’s teams. And a summit at UNLV, where I had the chance to engage in deep conversations about how to actually grow rugby in the States. My take? Fandom isn’t about luck. It’s about design.

Fans need to want, need, and feel like they should be involved. That’s how you build long-term affiliation. That’s how you transform a casual spectator into an unlimited fan. And there’s nothing but space and opportunity for rugby to become a popular force in the American sports conversation… if we do it right.

Everyone’s first question to me is… "how in the world did you get into rugby?” Well, this all started for me nearly two decades ago in Sydney, where I fell in love with rugby by getting a free Wallabies jersey for buying four rum and Cokes 😁. Then I went to a game, and that was that. I’ve never forgotten that feeling - being welcomed into a world that didn’t initially look like mine but made room when I showed up curious and ready to engage.

Now I’m back in Las Vegas, telling that same story to fans from Sydney and watching firsthand how sport, identity, and belonging get braided together in real time for a new audience in Sin City.

https://video.wixstatic.com/video/03877e_c04a894061df4d3fb70c0ae40512903e/1080p/mp4/file.mp4

The NRL has a multi-year agreement with Las Vegas, and year two just wrapped up. The potential for growth in the States is real, but only if the strategy includes storytelling, education, and community-building that goes beyond just filling seats.

So here’s the question: What’s the blueprint for building a sport's following from scratch in a saturated market, and what role should identity, culture, and belonging play in that plan? Good thing I have just the right model to address that. 😏 Check out my page on FanX Unlimited.