Magic Round has retuned as part of the 2023 NRL season, with 16 teams currently facing off at the same stadium in an action-packed weekend of footy.
The Sporting News takes a look at all the key details for this year's event.
MORE: When are NRL stars facing their former clubs this season?
When is NRL Magic Round 2023?
The 2023 edition of Magic Round is taking place between Friday, May 5 - Sunday, May 7.
This falls during Round 10 of the NRL draw and will be held before the State of Origin series.
The games are lined up in a similar format to a regular round, except for the usual Thursday game, which has been moved to create a three-game Sunday.
Where is NRL Magic Round 2023 being held?
Suncorp Stadium - located in Brisbane, Queensland - is hosting Magic Round again this year.
The 52,500-capacity stadium has hosted all three previous editions of the event.
NRL Magic Round 2023 draw, schedule, results
| Date | Match | Time (AEST) | Stadium |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fri, May 5 | Canterbury Bulldogs 30 - 34 Canberra Raiders | 6.00pm | Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane |
| Fri, May 5 | Manly Sea Eagles 6 - 32 Brisbane Broncos | 8.05pm | Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane |
| Sat, May 6 | New Zealand Warriors 6 - 18 Penrith Panthers | 3.00pm | Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane |
| Sat, May 6 | Cronulla Sharks 16 - 36 Dolphins | 5.30pm | Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane |
| Sat, May 6 | Melbourne Storm 12 - 28 South Sydney Rabbitohs | 7.45pm | Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane |
| Sun, May 7 | Wests Tigers vs. St George-Illawarra Dragons | 1.50pm | Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane |
| Sun, May 7 | Sydney Roosters vs. North Queensland Cowboys | 4.00pm | Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane |
| Sun, May 7 | Gold Coast Titans vs. Parramatta Eels | 6.25pm | Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane |
| BYE | Newcastle Knights |
NRL Magic Round 2023 tickets
The NRL announced that Magic Round had officially sold out of tickets across all three days, just hours before the Bulldogs and Raiders were set to kick-start the showpiece event.
Saturday’s matches were sold out early in the morning of May 5th before Friday and Sunday's matches were also sold out later on in the afternoon.
"This will be the biggest Magic Round yet," NRL CEO Andrew Abdo said.
"Not only will there be well over 130,000 through the gates over the course of the next few days, more than 40 percent of the ticket holders will be from outside Queensland.
"This is a phenomenal result for the game. For the first time ever, all three days have sold out."
How to watch NRL Magic Round 2023
Fans can watch all eight Magic Round matches via Fox League and Kayo Sports.
Channel 9, on the other hand, are broadcasting three games on free-to-air over the weekend:
- Manly Sea Eagles vs. Brisbane Broncos (Friday, 8.05pm)
- Melbourne Storm vs. South Sydney Rabbitohs (Saturday, 7.45pm)
- Sydney Roosters vs. North Queensland Cowboys (Sunday, 4.00pm)
When was the first NRL Magic Round?
The Magic Round format made its NRL debut in 2019 when Suncorp Stadium hosted the inaugural event.
It was cancelled in 2020 due to COVID-19, but returned for 2021 and 2022.
Notably, the NRL is not the first competition to use the Magic Round format, with the Super League debuting the unique concept in 2007 when 12 teams played at the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff.
