It has been a mainstay of the Super League calendar for nearly 20 years and been such a success that Australia’s NRL decided to take the idea and run with it. But nothing – particularly in professional sport – lasts for ever, and this weekend will tell us a lot about whether rugby league’s Magic Weekend is reaching the end of its lifespan.
The whole concept of all 12 teams playing in the same venue on the same weekend is built around taking Super League out on the road somewhere new. Cardiff, Newcastle and Edinburgh have all been particularly good hosts down the years, with St James’ Park now adopted as the spiritual home of Magic by many supporters of the game.
The local authorities in Newcastle adore the event, too. Tens of thousands of Super League supporters, no trouble and hundreds of thousands of pounds generated for the economy every year. But St James’ Park was unavailable this year, leading us to the rather uninspiring point we find ourselves at now.
New eyes and ears on the sport, new experiences for traditional fans and a brand-new stadium for everyone to get excited about. Where are we heading this weekend? Erm, Elland Road in Leeds. To call it a safe choice would be close to the money but to label it uninspiring? Entirely accurate. Magic Weekend in the middle of rugby league’s heartlands feels anything but exciting this year, sadly.
Ticket sales for the weekend will surpass 50,000, but the attendance will be one of the lowest in Magic’s history. That reflects the pre-event malaise many supporters have about it being held in Leeds: the Rhinos effectively play a home match against Warrington Wolves to close out day one of the event this year.
“I think I was involved in three of them, Cardiff twice and Murrayfield once, and I always looked forward to it as a player,” the Warrington coach, Sam Burgess, says. “I think it’s going to be great at Leeds because it’s a city that gets behind their sporting events, so hopefully it’ll be a blockbuster of a day.”
Magic remains in the calendar for 2025, and those in charge admit there is a focus on finding a “destination venue” once again. Newcastle would likely be at the top of the list. But if Elland Road flops, you wonder if there will be any way back for Magic at all.
Hopefully the action on the field makes up for the tepid feeling off it and there is at least plenty to be excited about in that regard. All of Super League’s top eight face each other in a quirk of the fixture list, with the headline act a blockbuster derby between Wigan and St Helens on Saturday evening. A battle of Super League’s bottom two, Hull FC and London Broncos, will start the event.
Warrington against Leeds – who are expected to retain their coach, Brad Arthur, for the next two seasons – finishes the opening day. And we could learn plenty about both the run-in for the playoffs and who will finish top by the end of this weekend, with the league leaders, Hull KR, in action on Sunday against Catalans.
Leigh face Salford in a battle of teams chasing the playoffs before Sunday finishes with a West Yorkshire derby between Huddersfield and Castleford. By then, we will have a clear idea of whether Magic will have delivered off the field as well as on it; and perhaps what the future holds for an event which has been a linchpin of the calendar for so long – but is now perhaps in need of fresh impetus.
