The National Rugby League was formed in 1998 under a partnership arrangement between the Australian Rugby League and News Ltd to administer the National Competition.

A Partnership Executive Committee, consisting of three representatives from News Ltd and three of the ARL, administers the agreement between the ARL and News Ltd and decides major financial issues.

The Partnership Executive Committee in turn commissions the National Rugby League Board to administer the competition. The NRL Board also consists of six members, three appointed by News Ltd and three by the ARL. One of the delegates from the NRL Board and one from the Partnership is nominated as Chairman of those bodies each year.

Each Chairman serves a term of only 12 months and the NRL partners rotate the right to appoint the incoming chairman at the end of that term. For instance, in a year where the ARL appoints the Chairman of the Partnership Committee then News Ltd will have appointed the Chairman of the Board. These roles reverse each year.

Approximately 35 staff members are employed at our headquarters in Sydney in seven different departments; CEO’s office, Football operations, Strategy & Special projects, Salary Cap & Registration, as well as Media, Marketing, and Finance.

The NRL markets the Telstra Premiership and Toyota Cup on behalf of the clubs, and organises the competition draw, finals matches and Grand Final. In association with the ARL, NRL staff also promote the Country v City Origin, State of Origin, the Centenary Bundaberg Test and the 2008 Rugby League World Cup.

The NRL provides referees for the matches and ensures judiciary procedures are in place.

Referees: Referees are hired directly by the NRL under the supervision of the Referees’ Coach who determines which referee is most suited to each game, both on the basis of form, experience and his opinion regarding which referee he believes is best suited to a particular match.

Affiliated bodies

The Clubs: Once the draw is finalized by the NRL and match days and times are allocated, the individual NRL clubs control all aspects of their individual home games. All game day revenue from these matches is controlled by the individual NRL club. The 15 clubs in the Telstra Premiership each have their own CEOs and organisational structure. They are bound to the NRL by club agreements and a common set of rules.

Judiciary: The Judiciary is an independent body. Each week all matches are reviewed by a Match Review Committee whose members have the task of deciding whether a player should be charged with an offence and, if so, the grading for that offence. The three-person Match Review Committee have the responsibility for reviewing incidents and laying charges. Bearing in mind that the referees have already picked up most incidents on the field, the match review system is designed as a safety-net. Once a charge has been set down for hearing, responsibility will be passed to the Judiciary Counsel who will independently present the case at the hearing.