"I'd like to see it": Storm CEO open to a Victorian Magic Round

Melbourne Storm CEO Justin Rodski is confident Victoria would make for a great host for the NRL’s Magic Round should the league decide to move it from Queensland.

Having started in 2019, the three-day Rugby League spectacle held at Suncorp Stadium has been a hit with fans who travel far and wide to watch 16 of the NRL’s 17 teams play at the same venue for a round alongside a women's State of Origin match before the round begins.

With the success of the event, the Queensland Government has renewed its agreement with the NRL multiple times, with the current contract expiring in 2027.

This currently opens the door for other state governments to attempt to prise the event out of the Sunshine State for 2028 and beyond.  

And Rodski believes that Melbourne would make for an ideal spot for the event for a myriad of reasons.

“I'd like to see it (in Victoria),” Rodski told SEN’s Whateley.

“I think that it's definitely got the ability to host the Magic Round here. I think that there's huge opportunity for the sport.

“We're growing participation, we're growing in pathways, we're growing in attendances, memberships.

“All of those metrics suggest that if the NRL was to look at Victoria, we would be an ideal place.

“We've got the infrastructure, we've got the sporting landscape, we've got the fans.

“I think if you look at even just State of Origin in Melbourne as an example, fans are willing to travel to Victoria, so visitation-wise (and) economically, it would work.

“We've got the great AAMI Park here as well as Marvel Stadium that could be utilised for the big matches to host a Magic Round in Victoria, (which) is definitely something that should be on the table.”

But as Rodski notes, it would be a difficult proposition to get from the Queensland Government.

“Now, whether or not we can pry it out of Queensland, I don't know,” he noted.

“But I think it'll definitely work here.”

Victoria has previously hosted similar concepts to Magic Round.

Between 2022 to 2024, the Victorian capital hosted Super Rugby Pacific’s Super Round at AAMI Park, with the average attendance of the three-day event sitting at 30,000.

This year’s Magic Round will take place at Suncorp Stadium during Round 11 of the NRL season, with Game II of the women’s State of Origin kick-starting the festival of Rugby League action.