NRL Grand Final beats AFL for the first time in a decade
Reece Walsh dominated on Sunday - as did Nine
The NRL Grand Final has pulled larger TV audiences than the AFL Final for the first time in a decade — with Sunday’s match-up between the Brisbane Broncos and Melbourne Storm attracting over 6.4 million viewers in total.
With average audiences of 4.46 million throughout the nail-biter — which saw Brisbane beat Melbourne 26 – 22 — (including streaming audiences of over 1.3 million), Nine’s broadcast comfortably drew more viewers than the prior weekend’s AFL Grand Final (on Seven), which had average audiences of 4.1 million, and 6.1 million viewers in total (including 969,000 on streaming)
Despite the absence of a NSW team in this year’s NRL final, the broadcast beat last year’s Storm v Panthers matchup by more than a million (average audience 3.42 million).
It also comfortably beat the average of 3.52 million that watched the Broncos lose the 2023 final to Penrith, and the 2.76 million in 2022 — the smallest TV audience in modern Grand Final history.
Most impressively, it beats the NRL’s own previous high water-mark, the 2005 West Tigers v North Queensland Cowboys clash, which had an average of 4.1 million viewers throughout. This makes this year’s NRL Grand Final not only the highest-rating TV show of the year, but the most-watched grand final since the modern TV ratings system started in 2001.
Broken down into states, Sydney’s total audience hovered just under 1.1 million, while Brisbane’s sat at 941,000. Melbourne (who had a team in the race, but no public holiday) had average audiences of 734,000, Perth 198,000, and Adelaide just 127,000.
The last time the NRL Grand Final outrated that of the AFL was in 2015, when the Brisbane Broncos lost to the North Queensland Cowboys 17-16 in golden point extra time (again, no NSW team).
As with this weekend’s Grand Final, the average audience size was bolstered by a nail-biting finish, which kept viewers glued to the screen throughout the entire game.
By contrast, this year’s AFL Grand Final was a definitive Brisbane victory early in the match, making fairweather fans more likely to switch off, while the 2015 grand final between Hawthorn and West Coast Eagles was a 45-point blow out.
It seems a close match makes all the difference in the TV ratings.
The 2025 NRL Grand Final is the most-watched since the current Oztam ratings system began in 2001
Like Seven with the AFL last Saturday, Nine dominated the ratings throughout Sunday with its wall-to-wall rugby league coverage.
The post-match trophy ceremony kept an average of 2.38 million watching the spoils, while the pre-match entertainment of soul-country-bikie hybrid Teddy Swims was watched by an average of 2.35 million.
The NRLW Grand Final from 3.55pm had an average audience of over a million viewers at any given time, with 1.8 million checking it out at some point – with total audiences up 36% on the 2024 grand final.
The NRLW post-match (or, if you like, the NRL Grand Final pre-pre-match) had an average of 1.38 million, while the State Cup Championship at 1.20pm was watched by an average of 494,000. Total audiences of 1.14 million showed that footy fans were starting to switch on by the mid-afternoon.
Even the Sunday Footy Show — airing at 10am on the Sunday of a long weekend — managed average viewership of 268,000 with a total of 735,000 flicking over at some stage.
These record-breaking ratings are a boon for Nine, but could ironically end up costing it a lot of money as negotiations begin next month for the next broadcast deal.
The NRL is hoping to net a record deal — or at least one comparable to the AFL’s current seven-year, $4.5 billion haul — and Nine’s ratings success will no doubt drive the asking price up further.
Last week, Australian Rugby League Commission chairman Peter V’landys threatened to sell the rights to another network if current rightsholders Nine and Foxtel attempt to “collude” on a deal, telling the AFR: “We will take the rights elsewhere.”
Nine’s TV boss Amanda Laing pointed out in a media release the weekend’s “phenomenal ratings are a testament to Nine’s unwavering commitment to being the true home of rugby league”.
“We believe the greatest game of all should be accessible to everyone, and by providing that universal, free-to-air access, we are helping to grow the sport’s fan base in every corner of the country,” she wrote.
Laing also gave “immense credit” to V’landys and NRL chief Andrew Abdo, saying. “We are proud of our close partnership and thank them for working with us to deliver this landmark season to the Australian public.”
Nine dominated Sunday’s Oztam Voz ratings (click to enlarge)
V’landys used the ratings victory to take a shot at the AFL, which he claimed was previously dismissive of the NRL.
“The way they have treated us is they have always looked down on us,” V’landys told News Corp.
“They have never taken us seriously. We have shown them that they need to take us seriously because we are serious.
“The numbers are showing that now. For someone that was laughing at us, it’s the reverse now. I am proud of the fact that rugby league has lifted so much to be doing what it is now.
“The results are going to be hard to beat in the future … The ability and skill of the players is like never before. It’s all about entertainment. We’re in the entertainment business.
“Success breeds success. The big one we need to get now is the big oak tree called broadcast. That’s the final icing on the cake.”
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