The Sunshine Coast Falcons have secured a two-year affiliation with the Brisbane Broncos, linking the rugby league clubs on player development and pathways but stopping short of a feeder team arrangement.
The agreement covers the 2026 and 2027 seasons and will see the clubs work together on academies, coaching opportunities and women’s pathways, while the Broncos maintain their existing feeder ties with Burleigh, Wynnum and Souths Logan.
It comes after the Falcons and Melbourne Storm ended their decade-long relationship.
Falcons coach Brad Henderson said the focus would be on strengthening local talent and staff development.
“The Broncos are a powerhouse club of Queensland and the NRL. We’re looking forward to working closely with them over the next few years, and hopefully beyond,” he said.
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“This is a great deal for our club and, most importantly, our Sunshine Coast region, with an increased focus on our players and pathways by the Broncos.”
Falcons CEO Chris Flannery said it was not feasible to have a feeder club link with the Broncos – which would have seen members of the Broncos’ NRL squad play for the Falcons – at this stage.
“Of course we would have loved to have NRL feeder players within the deal but we respect the current affiliations that the Broncos already have in place with Burleigh, Wynnum and Souths,” he said.
“A fourth affiliation would have just diluted the feeder player pool to each club even further.
“We will focus on making our Falcons roster, pathways and coach/staff development as strong as possible over the next few years.”
The relationship will focus on increasing the quality of development programs and academies across the Sunshine Coast and allow the Falcons and Broncos staff to identify and develop the next crop of Falcons and Broncos through the Falcons pathways system.
The partnership will also provide opportunities for Falcons coaches and high performance staff to attend Broncos HQ and training sessions during as well as providing additional commercial benefits with increased collaboration between the clubs’ commercial teams.
Meanwhile, the Broncos highlighted the Sunshine Coast’s role as a key growth region for rugby league.
“The Sunshine Coast is not only a fantastic region but also one of the fastest-growing areas in the country,” general manager of recruitment and pathways Simon Scanlan said.
“Through this new Falcons affiliation, alongside our existing partnerships, we are dedicated to helping the game from grassroots right through to the professional ranks.”
The Broncos have had a strong connection with the Sunshine Coast for more than 20 years, particularly through junior development programs.
The Broncos started a partnership with the Falcons in the women’s rugby league space last year. The team is a key affiliate to the Broncos’ NRLW side. Their deal has been extended for another two years.
