We’ve just witnessed the opening Test of the 2025 ABK Beer Ashes Series between England and Australia at Wembley Stadium — and now feels like the perfect moment to ask whether Wembley genuinely serves rugby league in the UK. What do the investment signals tell us about where the sport is headed? And how do venue-choice and media visibility (something I’ve previously argued is essential for this sport) fit into the bigger picture?

Let’s dig in.

Wembley – prestige earned, but does it deliver?

On paper, Wembley produced a statement. The Ashes opener drew 60,812 fans – a UK record for an Ashes Test. The match also secured a strong broadcast platform, which the sport needed.

Yet when you scratch beneath the surface, doubts appear (and I don’t mean paying £9 for a half-full plastic cup of wine!). Large sections of the bowl remained visibly empty – the top tier in particular. That emptiness undermines atmosphere and broadcast visuals. Wembley’s sheer size means that even a 60,000 crowd can feel thin in relative terms – it felt quiet, even sat a few rows from the pitch. The legacy of rugby league at the old Wembley ground doesn’t automatically translate into the modern stadium era.

So does Wembley work? The answer: it can. It offers prestige, a national stage and major stadium profile. But the sport must treat it as an “occasional showcase” rather than a default venue simply because it is iconic.

Investment, the NRL talks and UK rugby league’s structural challenge

Venue questions tie into a deeper issue: what happens behind the scenes if rugby league in the UK wants serious growth? The Rugby Football League (RFL) reportedly enters advanced talks to sell a stake in Super League to private equity firms. Meanwhile, proposals from the NRL for a “NRL Europe” model or investment stake face a lot of resistance, despite the ominous warning of an impeding Super League “crash” without revenue.

What does this suggest? The sport recognises it must raise serious capital if it wants to grow meaningfully. The Ashes at Wembley and other big occasions serve as part of the pitch: “look what we can do, look at the crowd.” But no amount of stadium glamour will convince investors unless the product (clubs, leagues, fan base, media rights) holds up.

The Ashes at Wembley operates not just as a sporting event but as a commercial showcase – a chance for rugby league to say “we’re back, buy in”. But the sport still needs to show what happens the day after.

Venue-choice logic and the 1895 Cup Final case

This brings us to a smaller but revealing thread: not every rugby league final gets the same treatment when it comes to venue. The 1895 Cup Final may not return to Wembley – the logic being the stadium’s huge size works against the atmosphere when the crowd is smaller.

In simple terms: if a stadium feels half-empty, it stops feeling like the event. By moving that final to a smaller, more appropriate venue, the RFL may effectively say: “we want fuller stadiums and better atmospheres, not just big names”.

So ask yourselves: If rugby league is prepared to move some finals away from Wembley for better effect, why still default to Wembley for marquee fixtures? The inconsistency matters for fans, sponsors and broadcasters.

Media, visibility and the Ashes ahead

The broadcast story here is encouraging: the Ashes opener aired nationally, bringing a strong platform. The crowd figure and venue added the headline-grabbing frame: exactly what the sport needed.

Yet visibility isn’t just about headlines – it’s about momentum, story arcs and sustained interest. A few caveats:

• England lost heavily (26-6) to Australia, which risks dampening the “big occasion” narrative.
• A large stadium with a partially empty bowl can still look impressive on paper, but feel flat live and on broadcast.
• The next Test takes place at Everton’s new stadium. A smaller capacity reduces the risk of visible emptiness, but raises expectations: the sport must deliver atmosphere and a sense of “must-go”.

You can almost hear what the RFL is saying during this test series: “We’ve got the platform, the broadcast, the crowd – now the task is to keep the story moving. The next venue is different, the task is different.”

What does this mean?

Let’s pull it together. The Ashes at Wembley offered exactly the kind of moment the UK game needed: a headline fixture, a strong crowd, a major stadium – the ingredients to raise profile. But moments alone don’t change structural issues.

Venue strategy, investment model, media narrative and fan experience must combine to create momentum, not just spectacle. Questions loom:

• Can rugby league fill big stadiums repeatedly? Or should the aim shift to fuller smaller venues and occasional big ones?
• Does the sport’s investment pitch rest too heavily on showcase events rather than sustainable growth?
• If finals like the 1895 Cup move away from Wembley for better atmosphere, does that show a smarter strategy – and if yes, should big-league test matches adapt too?
• With the next Test at Everton’s stadium, does the sport risk being judged on atmosphere and spectacle as much as broadcast and performance? If yes, what happens if one of those under-delivers?

Questions for you (the reader)

• If you attend a 60,000 crowd in a 90,000-seat bowl and it feels two-thirds full, is that better or worse than a sold-out 50,000 venue?
• Do you believe the RFL’s long-term goal is “play at Wembley every time” or “make each occasion feel epic and unmissable”?
• How much weight do you put on broadcast figures and glamour venues when judging the health of the sport?
• Does moving some finals away from Wembley show a more realistic strategy — and if yes, should the Ashes adapt too?
• What would you like to see ahead of the next Test at Everton’s stadium: better fan activation, atmosphere or crossover with football-stadium culture?

Conclusion

UK rugby league stands at a crossroads. The Ashes opener at Wembley gave it a moment – one of visibility, capacity, stage. But moments fade unless followed by movement. The real test doesn’t just start when the ball kicks off at Wembley: it starts the next day, in club crowds, in broadcast deals, in investment pipelines, in venue strategy, in growing the fan base.

Wembley worked as a headline. But the sport must ask: can it work as a model? And if not, how do we change the model without losing the sparkle? Keep your eyes on Everton this weekend: it might not have Wembley’s legend, but it may have something rugby league desperately needs more: a stadium that feels full, a crowd that feels alive, and a narrative that doesn’t just peak and fade.