NZRL Chair Justin Leydesdorff joins restructured IRL Board

International Rugby League has welcomed New Zealand Rugby League Chairman Justin Leydesdorff as a new IRL Director as part of a Board restructure.

Justin will join the IRL Board, which has been reduced from 11 directors to eight after regional consultations led by IRL Chair Troy Grant, and the finalisation of the desired configuration by Board members. The Board restructure was approved by the members last month.

The IRL Board will now comprise of the Chairs of Asia-Pacific Rugby League, Australian Rugby League Commission, European Rugby League, New Zealand Rugby League, the Rugby Football League and three independent Directors. The reduced Board sees an increase in the ratio of independent to member-elected Directors.

The CEOs of ARLC (NRL), NZRL and RFL will still be able to attend IRL Board meetings as official observers.

Under the IRL constitution, the Chair must be an independent Director.

Troy Grant, Emma Young and Laurie Daley are the current independent Directors on the IRL Board.

The other Directors are Sandis Tsaka (APRL), Peter V’landys (ARLC), Dean Andrew (ERL) and Justin Leydesdorff (NZRL).

Troy Grant continues as IRL Chair, with Dean Andrew recently elected by the Board as Deputy Chair, replacing Simon Johnson, who recently stood down from his role as RFL Chair.

The IRL is awaiting the appointment of the RFL Chair at the conclusion of the strategic review currently underway in England.

IRL Chair Troy Grant said the changes would ensure that the game wasn’t ‘over governed’ and the IRL focused on a more efficient and cost-effective way to strategically service member nations. 

“Our new strategy pieces being designed with deliberate capacity building investments will see us build on the international momentum we have achieved since our bounce back after the pandemic,” he said.

“We have a long way to go. We can’t be everything to everyone, nations at all levels of development have to do their own lifting as well, and if they do that, IRL will reciprocate with investments in technical education and genuine pathway competition opportunities to World Series’ and World Cups.”

NZRL Chair Justin Leydesdorff said: “It is an exciting time to be joining the IRL board and I look forward to continuing the good working currently happening to advance Rugby League across the globe. The international game has its challenges but is well positioned for further commercialisation and new markets are presenting themselves.”

Troy Grant will also Chair a new IRL Strategy Committee to refresh the IF's strategy by incorporating the key changes developed at the 2023 Board meeting in Singapore, which was the launchpad for the current approach around the commercialised international calendar.

"There’s been an entitlement attitude to being subsidised by the IRL which isn’t sustainable or realistic and those days are over,” Mr Grant said. “Viability must be achieved domestically then investment will come from the IRL for nations to grow and build capacity, and ultimately on-field improvement.”