After a month of posturing, positioning, politicking and publicity-hunting, the NRL has agreed to stage the 2022 NRL grand final in Sydney with Accor Stadium to host the decider for the 23rd time. It was long assumed the showpiece event would return to Sydney this season after Covid forced the 2021 title decider to Brisbane, but when politics and sport collided over the issue, all bets were off.
The origins of this trace back to the fall of Gladys Berejiklian as NSW premier. Her government had promised the NRL $800m in funding to upgrade four suburban venues. That promise came on the back of a deal to not proceed with a planned upgrade of the Sydney Olympic stadium that was initially tied into a plan that would also see the Sydney Football Stadium rebuilt. The new Moore Park venue, which has been completed at a cost of $828m is due to open in two weeks.
