by Rumours of the imminent demise of Super League’s Magic Weekend are far from true and the annual two-day event is set to push new boundaries, according to Rugby League Commercial managing director Rhodri Jones.
Nottingham, Dublin and Paris are among a number of potential host cities identified by Jones after a relatively successful first leg at Elland Road in Leeds this weekend.
The future of Magic Weekend, which began in Cardiff in 2007 and has also been staged in Edinburgh, Manchester, Liverpool and Newcastle, was thrown into doubt when the sport signed a “strategic partnership” with sports media giants IMG in 2022.
Despite fears it could ultimately thwart IMG’s drive to remove unloved ‘loop matches’ from a congested calendar, Jones confirmed the event – which features all 12 Premier League clubs in action over two days – is here to stay.
Jones told the PA news agency: “The Magic Weekend is on the cards for next year. There’s still a bit of work to do to work out where and when, but we’re in live discussions with the destination venues.
“We have developed a good relationship with Leeds United and we have a long-standing relationship with Newcastle which continues.
“Nottingham is a possibility via Nottingham Forest, we have had discussions with Cardiff, we are looking at Dublin and perhaps, in the longer term, Paris. We have to continue to evolve and innovate.”
The decision to move the event to Elland Road this year was met with widespread criticism from supporters, who saw it as an uninspiring alternative to Newcastle’s St James’s Park, which had staged the event for all but two of the last eight years but was unavailable for 2024.
But while the final cumulative attendance was expected to be considerably lower than in previous years, Jones was optimistic about the opening day, whose total of around 30,000 compared favourably with previous editions.
“When we announced we were coming to Elland Road, many people said it would be a disaster and the worst Magic Weekend ever,” added Jones.
“I think we proved some of the doubters wrong, and welcoming 30,000 people yesterday was a positive Magic Weekend day for us and compares favourably to any other Magic Weekend day we have had.”
Jones conceded that questions remained over the precise format of the competition, and whether it should remain a regular round of the Super League season or a standalone event such as a nine-round competition.
But he is adamant that IMG’s perceived disinterest in the format has been misinterpreted and the sport’s appointed decision-makers are fully convinced of its future potential as the sport’s flagship weekend.
“When the announcement was made that the loop was being phased out, it was assumed that Magic Weekend was part of it, but IMG never said they wanted Magic Weekend to go away – maybe we weren’t explicit enough in getting that message across,” Jones said.
“IMG has already been to their third Magic Weekend and they can see that it’s a good weekend. It gives us broadcast and commercial content, ticket revenue opportunities and a peak in our season.
“What we may not have done in the last few years is maximize our opportunities. There are still things we can do to improve its marketability. But we would have to find a very good replacement if we were to change Magic Weekend.”
