Grand final day – it's the biggest event on the rugby league calendar – and it's been confirmed that it's a sell-out.
With all tickets now snapped up and 50% capacity allowed under COVID-19 regulations at ANZ Stadium, 40,000 people will be on hand to see the Penrith Panthers take on the Melbourne Storm and NRLW powerhouses Brisbane face the Roosters.
The Storm booked their place in the NRL decider by convincingly beating Canberra on Friday night. The Panthers and South Sydney Rabbitohs clashed on Saturday for the remaining spot with the minor premiers progressing in a thriller.
Meanwhile, the NRLW grand final will be between the Roosters and back-to-back premiers Brisbane after the Broncos beat their opponents in Saturday's final round of the regular season.
The 2020 NRL and NRLW grand finals will be held on October 25 – later than usual due to the COVID-19 pandemic's effect on the season – at ANZ Stadium.
For all information about the event, read on.
Then there were two
Teams
NRL: Penrith Panthers v Melbourne Storm
Penrith opened their finals account with a one-point win over the Roosters and then advanced to their first grand final in 17 years with victory over Souths in the preliminary final at ANZ Stadium on Saturday night.
The Storm, who finished the regular season second, were the first to qualify for the NRL grand final by beating the Canberra Raiders 30-10. They beat the Parramatta Eels in week one of the finals before enjoying a week off.
Bromwich soaks up GF week with Smith
NRLW: Sydney Roosters v Brisbane Broncos
Brisbane are shooting for three premierships in a row while the Roosters are returning to the decider for the first time since 2018. Both teams locked in their spots with two consecutive victories before meeting in the final round, with the Broncos prevailing 24-16.
Fan and member information
The NRL understands our fans have plenty of questions regarding COVID-19 and the impact it is having on our game. To help answer some of the most frequently asked questions, we have created the below central information pages:
Schedule of events
Gates open at 3.15pm AEDT with the NRLW grand final kicking off at 4.05pm and the NRL decider to follow at 7.30pm.
There will be a tribute to retiring players before the NRL grand final as well as the presentation of the Ken Stephen Medal.
Aussie indie pop star Amy Shark will headline the grand final entertainment.
Getting to know Amy Shark
NRL Hospitality
NRL Hospitality provides the ultimate grand final experiences leading into the showpiece of the premiership season. Packages for grand final day are available here.
Engage via social
No matter how you’re celebrating, grand final day is the DAY FOR IT.
The NRL is inviting fans, clubs, players and brand partners to express why there's no better DAY FOR IT than grand final day, celebrating both the past and the present and to assist in creating a virtual time capsule for this great game.
- Use the #DayForIt and #NRLGF to show how you’re being a part of history and making this grand final Day the DAY FOR IT
- OR: Upload your footage + imagery to: https://cloud.nrl.com/2020_GF_Day_For_IT for us to access and use as part of the NRL GF time capsule of 2020.
- You can find Instagram Stickers to use on your stories and in content creation if you search ‘nrl’ or ‘dayforit’
Follow @nrl on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter for the need-to-know grand final information when you need to know it.
Stay engaged with the 2020 Telstra Premiership grand finals event page on Facebook for all the latest news.
NRL preliminary final results
Melbourne Storm 30 def Canberra Raiders 10, Friday October 16, at Suncorp Stadium. Smith insists future not settled as Storm blow away Raiders.
Penrith Panthers 20 def South Sydney Rabbitohs 16, Saturday October 17, at ANZ Stadium. Panthers claw past Rabbitohs to break 17-year grand final drought.
The fan experience will be front and centre thanks to a number of activities facilitated by NRL partners.
KFC Surprise & Delight "Lucky Seat": During half-time of the NRL grand final, there will be five seats drawn as "lucky seats" and notified via the big screen. Fans must be in their seat to win. Each fan will be delivered $100 in KFC vouchers by KFC promotional staff.
Hankook "Kick for $1 Million": Tyre retailers throughout Australia having been activating the Hankook ‘Kick for $1 Million’ campaign since the end of May, with shoppers getting the chance to win when purchasing four Hankook tyres. Cheer on your winner, and have the opportunity to see history made with the chance of $1,000,000 being given away.
Chemist Warehouse Couch Commentator: Discover the new voice of rugby league with the winner of Chemist Warehouse’s Couch Commentator appearing on the big screen from the best couch in stadium.
TIK TOK dance cam: Show us your moves from your seat to be featured celebrating on Tik Tok dance cam
rebel sport sports cam: Fans get the chance to show us the best sporting moves from your seat to celebrate #sportiscalling for the chance to to win a $150 voucher.
We thank our wonderful partners for supporting us this season. Show your support by visiting them at https://www.nrl.com/about-us/partners/ for all your grand final needs
Get Caught Up: NRLW Round 3
NRLW round three results
Warriors 22 def Dragons 10, Saturday October 16, at ANZ Stadium. Warriors thump Dragons to end campaign on a high.
Broncos 24 def Roosters 16, Saturday October 16, at ANZ Stadium. Selection headaches for Broncos after winning grand final preview.
How to tune in
Sunday, October 25 NRLW – Sydney Roosters vs Brisbane Broncos – ANZ Stadium 4:05pm AEDT
- Nine (Sydney/Brisbane), GEM (Melbourne/Adelaide/Perth)
- Foxtel – Fox League (nationally)
- Sky Sport 4 (New Zealand)
- 9Now
- Kayo Sports
- NRL app: Live Pass or Telstra customers
- Radio: ABC Radio, Nine Radio (2GB/4BC), 1170 SEN Sydney
International Coverage:
- WatchNRL
- Fox Soccer Plus (USA)
- Sky Sports (UK and Ireland)
- Sky UK - Main Event, Sky Sports Mix
Sunday, October 25 Penrith Panthers vs Melbourne Storm - ANZ Stadium 7:30pm EDT
- Nine (Sydney/Brisbane/Melbourne/Adelaide/Perth)
- Sky Sport 4 (New Zealand)
- 9Now
- Radio: ABC, Triple M Sydney/Brisbane, 2GB/4BC, NRL Nation
- (or via the Match Centre in NRL App or NRL.COM)
International Coverage:
- WatchNRL
- Fox Sports 2 (USA)
- Sky Sports (UK and Ireland)
- Sky UK - Main Event, Sky Sports Arena and Sky Sports Mix
- BeIN Sports (France)
- ESPN (Africa)
- Fox Sports (Netherlands)
- Rogers SportsNet (Canada)
- Sport 24 (In Flight/In Cruise)
- Fox Sports Asia/Disney (Singapore, Malaysia, Brunei)
- Digicel (Tonga)
- TVWAN (Papua New Guinea – Free TV)
- TVWAN Action (Papua New Guinea – PayTV)
- Elijah TV (Cook Islands)
- Fiji Broadcasting Corporation
Transport messaging
- With 40,000 people expected at this year’s NRL grand final, and reduced capacity on public transport due to COVID-19, fans are urged to drive with their group and take advantage of the discounted pre-book parking flat rate of $20 at Sydney Olympic Park car parks.
- Parking will be in high demand on the night, so to guarantee a space you’ll need to pre-book online before 11:59pm Saturday 24 October. Casual parking will be very limited and subject to availability.
- Fans are encouraged to arrive early, enjoy the earlier game and pre-game entertainment. There are also plenty of food and beverage options open in the precinct for a pre-match meal or drink.
- If you have to catch public transport, plan ahead, aim to arrive early and allow plenty of extra travel time to get to and from Olympic Park. Try to arrive early to avoid the crowds and demand for transport services
- Transport for NSW is running plenty of extra public transport services to help you get there and back home again: Express trains to Olympic Park will leave Central and Penrith regularly from 2pm, with return services from 9pm until late. Sydney Olympic Park Major Event Buses will also run on all routes with services starting from 2pm, and return services running from full-time.
- There’ll be additional measures and staff in place around transport hubs and ANZ Stadium to safely manage crowds leaving the game. Please be patient, practise physical distancing while in queues and follow the directions of staff on site.
- You can visit transportnsw.info to plan your trip or download the opal app or third party apps to plan ahead and check capacity. Please be patient if you need to wait for the next service with available physical distancing capacity.
- Unfortunately public transport costs cannot be included in ticket prices, due to contact tracing requirements. Please remember to use your Opal card or a contactless payment method - it’s the cleanest and safest option and will help NSW Health with contact tracing if it is required.
Entertainment
Australian indie pop star and five-time ARIA award-winner Amy Shark will headline the pre-match entertainment.
The Gold Coast-born singer-songwriter, who is a passionate Titans fan, had earlier headlined the NRL's Festival of Footy at Bega in February.
"It's been a really tough year for rugby league and live entertainment so I'm really excited to be bringing the band and crew together for this exciting pre-match performance," she said.
"I can't wait to celebrate the finalists on the field and bring some live music to homes across Australia."
Amy Shark’s latest single ‘C’mon’ feat. Travis Barker will be released on October 23, two days before the NRL Telstra Premiership grand final, and is available to pre-save now.
"The single was written about the highs and lows that come with being a musician, something our players can certainly relate to as professional athletes," NRL CEO Andrew Abdo said.
The pre-match entertainment will also feature the 2020 Retiring Players Tribute, a special tribute to Arthur Summons, as well as the Ken Stephen Medal and Veronica White Medal presentations which honour the male and female player who have made the biggest contribution to their local communities this season.
The NRL Telstra Premiership grand final 2020 is supported by the NSW Government, through its tourism and major events agency Destination NSW.
