The NRL was born out of a compromise following what became known as the ARL/Super League War with it's first season coming in 1998.
The ARL was in charge of the game in Australia with Channel 9 holding the TV rights, but in 1995, News Corp was buying up TV rights in other countries and wanted a slice of it in Australia. Some clubs and players signed up with News Corp's Super League while others remained loyal to the ARL. Without wishing to get too far into the ins and outs of it all, two competitions ran parallel for a few seasons until there was an outbreak of common sense prevailed and the two sides got back together in the guise of the NRL.
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