Photo: Supplied / Te Matatini Enterprises
The chief executive of Te Matatini, the largest kapa haka festival in the world, says the organisation will need to rethink where the competition is hosted to accommodate its ever growing size.
Around 15,000 people went to the final day of Te Matatini o Te Kāhui Maunga at the Pukekura/Bowl of Brooklands in New Plymouth on Saturday, packing out the bowl to watch the top 12 teams in the country battle it out for the top prize, Toa Whakaihuwaka - the champions of Te Matatini.
First place went to Te Kapa Haka o Ngāti Whakaue, whose beautiful tribute to the late Sir Bom Gillies left many in tears. Second and third place went to Ngāti Rangiwewehi from Te Arawa and Ngā Tūmanako from Tāmaki Makaurau respectively.
But now the tournament is over, the focus has shifted to where Te Matatini will go next.
Te Matatini 2025 saw a record 55 groups qualify for the tournament, meaning it had to be extended by an extra day to accommodate the hundreds of performers who took the stage.
It was understood Te Tauihu o Te Waka, the Nelson-Marlborough region, would host the Te Matatini festival in 2027.
However, Te Matatini chief executive Carl Ross told media after Saturday's prizegiving that because the biennial festival was growing bigger and bigger, the organisation needed to do its "due diligence" when picking the next region.
"Before every festival we do our due diligence, and this time our due diligence has changed. It has changed because the festival has become so big, it's gotten massive.
"We have to have a good look at infrastructure, transportation, there are so many areas to look at."
Ross said no other regions had put forward a tono - or request - to host the festival in 2027, and Te Matatini would meet in April to make a decision.
"When we have a look here [New Plymouth], everyone was saying 'we have WOMAD, we run this one here, run that one here' [but] this is probably the biggest event this place has had.
"So we are doing our due diligence to see if it's feasible to go to Te Tauihu because that's where the next festival is gonna be. We are checking infrastructure, flights and what could happen if our rōpu got stuck down there."
Rawiri Waititi performing with Te Taumata o Apanui. Photo: Te Matatini Enterprises / SUPPLIED
Most of the accommodation in New Plymouth and around the Taranaki region had been booked out by haka groups and people flooding the region to watch the festival.
Ross said it cost around $160,000 to get a team to the festival.
"Te Matatini has grown that big, now we have to look at where we're going over the next 10 years. We can't stick with what we have."
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