Expanding the NRL to 18 teams might not happen until 2015, league boss David Gallop believes.

With a new broadcast deal to be in place from 2013, bidders have been lining up to become the new sides in the competition.

Perth, Brisbane, Ipswich in Queensland, the NSW Central Coast, Central Queensland, Papua New Guinea and Wellington have expressed an interest in joining the NRL from 2013.

The bid team for a second Brisbane side have been the most vocal in recent months, flagging rugby superstars Quade Cooper and Sonny Bill Williams as among their targets.

With an independent commission to run the game delayed, but likely to come on board later this year, Gallop has never made a commitment to expand in 2013.

But on Sunday, he flagged 2015 - for the first time - as a possible entry date.

"Personally I would have thought we would get to 18 teams by 2015," he told ABC radio.

"It might come earlier but we should be giving our existing clubs a couple of years with the new television money to get themselves stable before we introduce new teams into the competition."

The new broadcast deal is expected to fetch somewhere in the vicinity of $1 billion, a massive increase on the current contract.

Gallop said a new franchise would need 18 months to two years' lead time to be ready.

Meanwhile, the NRL chief executive said State of Origin was unlikely to be moved from a weeknight, when it pulled in massive TV ratings, despite calls to ease players' workloads.

"We're certainly looking seriously at moving it to earlier in the week," he said.

"A Monday night would give the players more days to be able to play club footy after Origin.

"One of the beauties of Origin football is that it's on a weeknight.

"We get clear air (no competition from other codes) and we get that build-up time for the players to be in camp."

Gallop ruled out a mini knockout-style competition involving clubs during the Origin period.

"The fans want to see teams playing for points in the premiership," he said.

"Little competitions in the middle of the year, I don't think, are going to satisfy anyone."

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