Cronulla have been forced out of the Shire for the opening weekend of the 2026 NRL finals, with the Sharks to face North Queensland at Allianz Stadium rather than Ocean Protect Stadium.
The decision means the Panthers, New Zealand Warriors, Sharks and South Sydney Rabbitohs will all begin the play-offs as designated home teams, although Cronulla are the only club required to move to a larger venue.
South Sydney and Newcastle will open the finals series at the 42,000-capacity Allianz Stadium in Moore Park. The match will not be staged at Accor Stadium, which holds almost twice as many spectators, after concerns that the Knights would struggle to attract a suitably large crowd.
NRL finals venues confirmed
The Warriors will host the Dolphins at Go Media Stadium on Saturday afternoon, retaining their 26,000-seat Auckland home despite the availability of Eden Park, which can accommodate roughly twice as many supporters.
Cronulla will then meet the Cowboys at Allianz Stadium, before Penrith face the Sydney Roosters in a one-versus-four qualifying final on Sunday afternoon.
The Panthers and Roosters met at the same venue three weeks ago, when the Roosters won 12-6 in front of 16,768 spectators.
The decision to move Cronulla has prompted frustration at the club, which has hosted finals at its home ground in recent seasons. More than 12,000 supporters attended the Sharks’ elimination-final victory over the Roosters last year, while similarly sized crowds watched Cronulla matches there in 2023 and 2022.
Peter V’landys, the executive chairman of the Australian Rugby League Commission, said the change was intended to ensure Cronulla supporters could attend.
“We want to look after all the Cronulla supporters – we don’t want any of them to miss out – and this way none of them will miss out,” he said.
V’landys added that additional transport would be arranged so supporters could travel to Allianz Stadium and attend the match as a major event.
Cronulla chief executive Dino Mezzatesta said the club was disappointed, arguing that teams which earn home advantage should be allowed to use their own stadium.
“If you earn the right to play at home, you should be able to play at home,” Mezzatesta said. “Other teams have not been asked to move to bigger venues, so there’s been no parity in that sense.”
He said the Sharks would work with the NRL to attract between 20,000 and 25,000 supporters to Allianz Stadium, adding that the venue needed to be filled with Cronulla colours for the switch to make sense.
The Sharks and Cowboys drew fewer than 20,000 spectators when they met in a semi-final at Allianz Stadium in 2024.
New Zealand’s Warriors, meanwhile, were pleased to retain their Auckland venue for the first week of the finals. Club chief executive Cameron George said Go Media Stadium was capable of hosting a major play-off fixture, while acknowledging that Eden Park remained an option for a later round.
“We’re thankful the NRL listened to us,” George said. “The reality is Penrith get to remain at CommBank and avoid a move to a bigger stadium, and it’s great we get to stay put in the first week.”
V’landys said Eden Park remained “100 per cent on the map” should the Warriors progress to the second or third week of the finals.
For South Sydney, Allianz Stadium has increasingly become a second home. The Rabbitohs have played a number of significant matches there this season and are scheduled to stage four regular-season fixtures at the Moore Park venue in 2027 and five in 2028.
Chief executive Blake Solly said the ground had already developed a strong connection with the club, pointing to the Rabbitohs’ 2022 final against the Roosters, Alex Johnston’s record-breaking try and Jai Arrow’s recent milestone appearance as important moments at the stadium.
