1300 791 651 Saved Speakers
Search
Enquire Now
Saved SpeakersSaved Speakers

Wayne Bennett AM

Legendary Rugby League Coach, Team Culture & Development Expert

One of the most respected and successful coaches in rugby league history. With a career spanning more than four decades. Off the field, he is a sought-after speaker, inspiring sporting and corporate audiences alike with insights on leadership, team performance, and personal development.

Save Speaker
Request Availability
Download PDF
Testimonials

Quick Contact


Wayne Bennett is widely regarded as one of the greatest and most influential figures in rugby league history. Beginning his playing career as a talented goal-kicking winger with Collegians Warwick, he went on to represent clubs including Huddersfield (England), All Whites Toowoomba, Ipswich, and Souths Brisbane, while also representing Brisbane, City (QRL), South Queensland, Queensland, and Australia.

Wayne transitioned to coaching in 1976, first with Ipswich and then as captain-coach at Souths Brisbane. After a brief retirement, he returned to coaching and led Souths Brisbane to the 1984 premiership, a team featuring legends Wally Lewis and Gene Miles.

He took over as Queensland State of Origin coach in 1986 and later co-coached the Canberra Raiders to their first grand final appearance in 1987. As inaugural coach of the Brisbane Broncos from 1988, Wayne led the club to six premierships, including titles in 1992, 1993, 1997 (Super League), 1998, 2000, and 2006. He also coached St George Illawarra Dragons to the 2010 premiership, the Newcastle Knights to a preliminary final in 2013, and South Sydney Rabbitohs to the 2021 grand final.

Wayne has also guided the newly formed Dolphins team and returned to the Rabbitohs in 2025 for his second stint, citing “unfinished business.” With over 962 first-grade games coached—the most in the sport’s history—he is a seven-time premiership-winning coach and a 2024 inductee into the NRL Hall of Fame, becoming one of the first coaches to receive the honor alongside Jack Gibson.

Renowned not only for his coaching achievements but also for his leadership, mentoring, and ability to build strong team cultures, Wayne Bennett is also a highly sought-after speaker. His insights on leadership, resilience, and team performance resonate with audiences both inside and outside the sporting arena.

Wayne provided more than we expected. His speech had the whole crowd to attention. You could have heard a pin drop. He covered off on the points we requested in our pre-brief. He stayed right to the end 10pm and constantly signed books by requesting staff. Feedback this morning has been exceptional. National Australia Bank
Wayne Bennett was great at our event! He was received really well and I've had lots of people say they enjoyed his session. He took lots of questions and hung around after the event so people could chat to him etc. Virgin Blue
Feed back from our Clients has been wonderful, they enjoyed every moment of his speech. E. Sime & Company Australia Pty Ltd
Our recent dealer conference at the Sheraton on the Park was an outstanding success, due primarily to the keynote address presented by Wayne Bennett. Wayne was able to identify the delegates’ business environment and worked his entire address around that subject. He was interesting, humorous and really dug down to the grass roots of team leadership. He handled current Rugby League headlines with ease and was incredibly interesting and provocative. What I admired most is the personal time he spent after the talk, mixing with all delegates during coffee break. He specifically made sure that everyone had moved back to the conference room for the continuation of their session before he departed from the hotel. Wayne was a great asset to the conference and thank you for helping us to make it such a success. Incentive Action
Wayne was very engaging and held the audience’s attention all through his presentation. NightOwl Marketing Pty Ltd
© Celebrity Speakers 2025. All rights reserved | Privacy
Created by núcleo