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Melbourne Rectangular Stadium, the host of Super Round between 2022–2024.

The Super Round, also referred to as the Super Round Melbourne (2022–2024),[1][2] is an event in the Super Rugby Pacific in which all fixtures for one round of the season are organised to be played at one venue. This event is in contrast with the rest of the regular season, which is played in a home-and-away format. With the original idea stemming from the English Super League (rugby league) in the late 2000s, the concept was introduced by the Australian-based National Rugby League (rugby league) for their 2019 season before being introduced into the Super Rugby Pacific for their inaugural season (2022).

Following the axing of Melbourne-based Super Rugby franchise, the Rebels, and the expiry of the events hosting in Melbourne, it was revealed in late 2024 that Super Round would be dropped for the following season (2025).[3] However it is expected to return for 2026.[4][5]

Background and reception

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Although originating in England's Super League competition,[6] the concept was "owned" by New Zealand Rugby (NZR).[7] New Zealand Rugby licensed out the concept to Australian events company TEG Sport (owned by Ticketek),[7][8] whom in turn negotiated a two-year deal with Victoria's state government-owned tourism and events company, Visit Victoria,[9] to bring the event to Melbourne.[7] The event was also made possible from the state government's "Major Events Fund" initiative.[10] All New Zealand teams who had to surrender home games were reportedly given a flat fee of about A$300,000 in compensation for lost gate revenue.[7][11]

Reception

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The Super Round was heavily criticised by The New Zealand Herald upon its first year for its location (Melbourne, 2022–2024) and its low attendances.[11][12] Calling the event a "flop" and "ill-conceived",[11][12] the publication pointed out the conflict between hosting the event in a city dominated by sport,[13] particularly the local sport of Australian rules football,[14] which hosts ten of the Australian Football League's (AFL) eighteen professional teams. Speaking on the Breakfast with Baz & Izzy radio show, former New Zealand fullback Israel Dagg praised the Super Round idea and also criticised the event for its poor attendances and location. Dagg also mentioned Perth, Western Australia as a more attractive location to host the event.[15] In 2023, Australian sports website, The Roar, called the concept a "winner" but had "far more potential than what has been delivered so far."[16]

List of Super Rounds

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Year Stadium Location Days Total attendance Avg attendance Ref.
2022 Melbourne Rectangular Stadium
(AAMI Park) 		Olympic Boulevard, Victoria, Australia 3[a] 30,000 10,000 [19]
2023 3 26,400 (confirmed)[b] Unknown[b] [20]
2024 3 32,152 10,717 [21][22]
2025 Not held

See also

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Notes

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  1. ^ There was a scheduled match between Moana Pasifika and the Force to be held on 22 April 2022, but due to several Force players testing positive for COVID-19, the match was postponed, and rescheduled for 24 May 2022. The venue was changed from Melbourne Rectangular Stadium to Mount Smart Stadium.[17][18]
  2. ^ a b Full attendance figures have not been published for the 2023 event.

References

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  1. ^ "AAMI Park To Host Rugby Super Round". aamipark.com.au. AAMI Park. Archived from the original on 11 March 2022.
  2. ^ "Super Round Returns to Melbourne in February 2024". super.rugby. SANZAAR. Archived from the original on 20 March 2023.
  3. ^ Tora, Iliesa (13 September 2024). "'Fans front of mind' in new format for Super Rugby Pacific". Radio New Zealand. Archived from the original on 14 September 2024.
  4. ^ Drennan, Jonathan (30 September 2024). "Super Rugby draw gives Waratahs' 'galacticos' golden chance to hit the ground running". The Sydney Morning Herald. Nine Entertainment. Archived from the original on 30 September 2024. New Super Rugby chief executive Jack Mesley will oversee an extended 16-round regular season in 2025, with the finals series moving from eight teams to six to ensure a more competitive season. There will be no Super Round next year, but the concept is set to return in 2026.
  5. ^ Doran, Christy (30 September 2024). "REVEALED: McKellar's Waratahs given dream start in new draw, Super Round shelved in 2025". The Roar. Archived from the original on 30 September 2024.
  6. ^ Proszenko, Adrian (9 May 2019). "NSW keen to poach Magic Round from Queensland". The Sydney Morning Herald. Nine Entertainment.
  7. ^ a b c d Robinson, Georgina (25 April 2022). "Hits and misses but Super Round worth a second shot". The Sydney Morning Herald. Nine Entertainment. Archived from the original on 27 April 2022.
  8. ^ "Super Round Melbourne Bound Again". super.rugby. SANZAAR. 11 August 2023. Archived from the original on 17 August 2023.
  9. ^ "About Visit Victoria". corporate.visitvictoria.com. Victoria State Government. Archived from the original on 19 March 2018.
  10. ^ "Super Round Melbourne – Victoria Scores Rugby Blockbuster". premier.vic.gov.au. Department of Premier and Cabinet. 15 November 2021. Archived from the original on 11 December 2023.
  11. ^ a b c Napier, Liam (27 April 2022). "The Sauce with Liam Napier: The real cost of Super Rugby's ill-conceived 'super round'". The New Zealand Herald. New Zealand Media and Entertainment. Archived from the original on 30 April 2022.
  12. ^ a b "Tight Five with Elliott Smith: The surprise halfback who could be an All Blacks bolter". The New Zealand Herald. New Zealand Media and Entertainment. 29 April 2022. Archived from the original on 8 May 2022.
  13. ^ "Melbourne named world's sporting capital". The Sydney Morning Herald. Fairfax Media. 21 April 2016. Archived from the original on 18 March 2018.
  14. ^ Napier, Liam (27 February 2024). "Former Super Rugby Pacific contender emerges as potential Rebels replacement next year". The New Zealand Herald. New Zealand Media and Entertainment. Archived from the original on 20 April 2024. The Super Round concept has failed to gain a foothold in Melbourne's AFL heartland, with poor crowds undermining the first two events. With the Rebels unlikely to feature next year, Brisbane, Perth or Auckland could be asked to step in as hosts if the Super Round is retained beyond this year.
  15. ^ Dagg, Israel (co-host) (25 April 2022). 'The audience was poor'. Izzy believes the location of the Super Round was its biggest problem (Radio broadcast). SENZ.
  16. ^ Parkes, Geoff (5 March 2023). "The Wrap: Another Super Rugby Round of hits and frustrating misses". The Roar. Archived from the original on 12 March 2023.
  17. ^ "Moana Pasifika-Western Force postponed due to COVID". SANZAAR. 20 April 2022. Retrieved 20 April 2022.
  18. ^ "Moana Pasifika v Western Force match rescheduled". SANZAAR. 10 May 2022. Retrieved 10 May 2022.
  19. ^ "Super Round Melbourne Returns in 2023". super.rugby. SANZAAR. 19 September 2022. Archived from the original on 4 December 2022.
  20. ^ Snape, Jack (2 March 2024). "Debts and debacle cloud rugby's Super Round, but 10,582 find reason for hope". Guardian Australia. Guardian Media Group. Archived from the original on 11 March 2024.
  21. ^ McKay, Brett (7 March 2024). "Where next for Super Rugby Pacific's 'Super Round'?". Rugbypass. Archived from the original on 30 September 2024.
  22. ^ "Super Rugby: Chiefs d Brumbies – Hurricanes d Reds". austadiums.com. Archived from the original on 8 March 2024.
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