Shining a Spotlight on Clubs’ Support of Rugby League

The fourth iteration of the Your local club ClubGRANTS advertising campaign has begun, highlighting the generous support that clubs right across NSW provide to the game of rugby league every year.

Beyond the broadcast deals, it's registered clubs that power the heartbeat of rugby league, fostering its strength and vitality — from the grassroots to the elite level — with an impressive commitment exceeding $50 million in 2023 alone. 

For more than six decades, funding from the state’s clubs has helped improve infrastructure, training facilities and equipment, while creating an elite pathway for promising young rugby league players and making it affordable for kids and adults to play the game.

Over 300 clubs across NSW provide support to rugby league through ClubGRANTS, including the Juniors Group of Clubs and Canterbury League Club — both of which feature in this latest series of ClubGRANTS advertisements. 

Under the Your local club banner, ClubsNSW has produced one 15-second ad, two 30-second ads and one 60-second ad to be shared across targeted social media channels. The 15-second ad and one 30-second ad will be shown on 9Now and Kayo, whilst a 45-second live read will also air on 2GB Breakfast, Mornings and Drive. Kicking off on 22 February, this campaign will run for six weeks. 

The generous $2.2 million in ClubGRANTS funding from the Juniors Group of Clubs to the South Sydney District Junior Rugby Football League ensures that the participation of over 3000 junior players in the South Sydney district is entirely cost-free. This alleviates the financial strain on families by covering all expenses such as registration, jerseys, refereeing fees, insurance and playing field hire, making participation in the competition more accessible.

“The funding we receive from Juniors Kingsford via ClubGRANTS is the single most important element in financing our operations and has played a pivotal role in fostering the expansion of the female game within our district,” said Luke Curry, CEO of South Sydney District Junior Rugby Football League.

Through ClubGRANTS, Canterbury League Club is generously subsidising $100 for every registered junior rugby league player participating in the Canterbury Bankstown Junior Rugby League competition in 2024. The subsidy will apply to players registered to play in competitions from Under 4s up to Under 13s and means that the registration cost to parents is greatly reduced. 

“NSW clubs are the backbone of rugby league and help support our goal to break down participation barriers, cultivate local talent, and contribute to the sport's growth,” said Phil Gould, General Manager of Football, Canterbury Bankstown Bulldogs.

As the NSW Government reviews the ClubGRANTS scheme, it presents an opportunity to highlight the incredible support that NSW clubs provide to the community, creating lasting positive impacts.

This campaign series will continue to focus on how clubs, through the ClubGRANTS scheme, provide immeasurable support to numerous initiatives that improve the lives of those in their communities, including:

• Wests Group Macarthur, Campbelltown Catholic Club and Ingleburn RSL, who have committed $600,000 over three years through the ClubGRANTS scheme to fund the purchase and installation of Automated External Defibrillators (AEDs) in residences across the Macarthur region.
• The six clubs in the Illawarra & South Coast region that have committed a collective $80,000 to Lifeline South Coast through the ClubGRANTS program. 
• The 11 clubs on the Central Coast that have provided over $150,000 to local surf life saving clubs.

Throughout 2024, more key areas will be highlighted in multiple regions across the state. 

ClubGRANTS is one of Australia’s largest and most established grant programs and is a partnership between ClubsNSW and the NSW Government. It commenced in 1998 to formalise the longstanding practice of clubs responding and contributing to local community needs.  

In the past 12 months, a record $121 million in financial support for community services, projects and programs was provided through the ClubGRANTS program — that figure exceeded the mandatory contribution required under the ClubGRANTS Guidelines by over $50 million.  

If you have a ClubGRANTS story you want to highlight, email [email protected].