Toronto’s new league signs revolutionary deal

The North American Rugby League (NARL) signs multi-year league level agreement with TicketCo for hybrid matches.

The North American Rugby League has signed a multi-year agreement with TicketCo to provide all its clubs with cashless ticketing and streaming.

The league level agreement heralds a major milestone for TicketCo as its first client in America, ahead of fully launching in the US later this year as part of its global expansion. The brand new NARL which is set to launch in May 2022 will use the cloud-based digital technology to make ticketing easy for supporters. Clubs will also have access to TicketCo Media Services to broadcast matches online globally.

NARL will be the only professional rugby league club competition in the United States and Canada, with clubs from the US and Canada taking part. The inaugural season was planned for 2021 but was moved to next year due to COVID-19.

The TicketCo platform will be used for an exhibition match in September between Toronto Wolfpack and Washington DC Cavalry.

Robert Curtis, CEO of NARL, said: “This is an exciting partnership between two organisations that are launching big in the USA market. There is a lot of synergy between us and the agreement will help make ticketing easy for clubs and fans.

“All our clubs will use TicketCo for cashless mobile first ticketing, the benefits of a league level agreement are vast. It means we can provide our clubs with a great deal, modern technology and by everyone using the same platform it will simplify ticketing for the whole league. Additionally, it will make marketing, reporting and analysis straight forward for the league as we look to build participation numbers.

“Our sole aim is to grow the fantastic sport of rugby league in North America and create a legacy for generations to come. The start of the league is getting closer and everyone is excited about a new class of contact sport.”

David Kenny, Head of Global Partnerships at TicketCo, said: “This is a landmark agreement for TicketCo marking our first major partnership in the US. The NARL is an exciting new league in North America that we fully expect to grow year on year. It is great to be involved from the launch and we’re looking forward to helping the league and all the clubs deliver first class fan experiences and easy to use ticketing and the option to deliver online broadcasting.”

Kaare Bottolfsen, CEO of TicketCo, said: “It is an exciting era for the company and we are proud to have made our first step into the US with such a high profile league level agreement. It is a big milestone ahead of the company’s full launch in US of our game-changing ticketing and streaming solutions.”

TicketCo is a cloud-based event payment and online broadcasting company, with offices in multiple territories. The platform’s ticketing solution provides mobile-first cashless technology that enables organisers to sell tickets and promote offers on food, drink and merchandise. Its online broadcasting service, TicketCo Media Services, is available on any device and provides a secure paywall.

In the UK it provides cashless ticketing for rugby clubs including London Broncos, Bedford Blues and Ealing Trailfinders.