NRL on Kayo Sports soars to record season highs – Kayo Sports has recorded its biggest NRL season yet, with the 2026 Telstra Premiership delivering a ninth consecutive year of audience growth on the platform.
According to Foxtel Corporate Affairs, average audiences for NRL on Kayo Sports were up 9 per cent year-on-year across the regular season, with 6.4 billion minutes streamed.
The result underlines how central rugby league has become to Kayo’s live-sport proposition, particularly as Kayo Sports and Foxtel’s sports business now sit within the wider DAZN company structure in Australia.
Foxtel says the 2026 season was also the most watched NRL season across all Foxtel Group platforms, including Foxtel, Foxtel Go, Foxtel Now, Kayo Sports and Binge.
Every club recorded year-on-year growth on Kayo Sports. The Brisbane Broncos delivered the highest average audience of any team, while the Dolphins recorded the biggest year-on-year percentage growth. The Penrith Panthers and North Queensland Cowboys ranked second and third for average audience.
The most-watched regular-season match of the year, and the most-watched regular-season NRL match of all time on Kayo Sports, was Wests Tigers v Brisbane Broncos in Round 7. The match was decided by Adam Reynolds’ late field goal, giving the Broncos a 21-20 win.
Sydney Roosters v Brisbane Broncos in Round 9 was the second most-watched game, while the Las Vegas season opener produced two of the top five matches with Newcastle Knights v North Queensland Cowboys and Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs v St George Illawarra Dragons.
Magic Round was the most-watched round of the year and the most-watched regular-season NRL round of all time on Kayo Sports, generating 304 million minutes streamed. Sydney Roosters v North Queensland Cowboys at Magic Round rounded out the top five games of the season.
Steve Crawley, Executive Director of Kayo Sports, said nine straight years of growth was an outstanding result for a sport that Foxtel has partnered with for more than three decades. He also pointed to rights through to 2034, further expansion in 2027 and DAZN’s ability to take NRL coverage into 200 markets.
Every NRL Finals match until the Grand Final will be available on Kayo Sports and Foxtel, live and ad-break free during play, with Fox League commentary.
For more rugby league coverage, visit TV Central’s NRL section. For official streaming information, visit Kayo Sports’ rugby league page.
