They say seven days is a long time in rugby league, a lot can change from one week to the next.
Well in five years, the NRL has become nearly unrecognisable.
In September of 2020, Andrew Abdo was appointed as chief executive officer of the league, after his marked success in his previous role as chief commercial officer.
Now, The Australian is reporting that Abdo has had meetings about becoming the next CEO of TEG; a global sports and entertainment promoter.
With Peter V'landys' increasingly aggressive ambitions to expand the game by entering new markets, Abdo's potential exit could have significant ramifications on many of the league's major plans going forward.
The Sporting News looks at what a potential change in the NRL's executive would mean for the state of rugby league.
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What changing CEO would mean for the state of the NRL
Abdo's background is in corporate finance, and in his aforementioned role as chief commercial officer, he yielded great returns for the NRL on the financial front.
Given that he took the reins as CEO in the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic, what the game has achieved commercially during his tenure can only be classified as a success.
However, per The Australian's report, Abdo has continued to concede power to V'landys in recent years, which has prompted speculation about his potential departure.
If the power struggle is as one-sided as we're being led to believe, V'landys may ride his current momentum through a regime change without a hitch; forging on with the NRL's many initiatives already taking shape.
With that said, Abdo's role in growing the game, particularly overseas, cannot be understated.
Take the deal with FOX free-to-air broadcasters in the United States for the coverage of Las Vegas matches for example.
The exposure from those games are likely to pay significant dividends in the not so distant future. Would the NRL have struck that deal without Abdo's sway in corporate circles?
That is without mentioning the added revenue streams that can be generated from America's sporting market. Will a different chief executive officer be able to capitalise on the inroads made on that front to justify the league's substantial financial investment in the region?
The same sentiment carries through to the corporate sponsorship opportunities from other initiatives such as Magic Round - an innovation created and executed by Abdo.
With the NRL set for a new broadcast rights deal negotiation in 2027, a change in NRL CEO could completely upset the status quo.
For now, it has been reported that streaming giants Netflix, Amazon, and DAZN are all being considered, but who's to say that a different administration would not explore the usual suspects still doing the rounds in linear television?
The final spanner in the works is the prospect of two new NRL teams on the horizon, as the league continues its expansion in Perth, and attempts to navigate the murky waters of establishing a franchise in Papua New Guinea.
A change in CEO, just as the league begins its full-throttle attack on this project, would raise many questions about how viable the NRL could be commercially in both a hostile Perth market, and an untapped PNG market.
Abdo didn't land the role as CEO at TEG, but the approach will only fuel speculation of a possible Abdo-V'landys breakup down the pike.