Yakstorm

The Hong Kong - China Thunder have defeated the Philippines Tamaraws 34 - 20 at the PhilSports Complex in Manila on Sunday to claim the inaugural Presidents Cup.

Livestream link for today's inaugural Presidents Cup clash between Philippines Tamaraws and Hong Kong Thunder at the PhilSports Complex in Manila. Kick off: 15:15 Local / 16:15 AEDT / 7:15 GMT https://youtube.com/watch?v=cZelK8bGTAU

Brazil has defeated Argentina 28 - 22 in the second match of the South American Championship. The result means that Chile can win their second Championship title even if they lose Sunday's game (depending on the margin)

Live stream link for Argentina v Brazil https://youtube.com/watch?v=CLzYnQ6bodk Kick off: 2pm Local / 4am AEDT / 5pm GMT

Chile has won the opening game of the series, defeating defending Champions, Brazil, 44 - 22. The result means Brazil needs to defeat Argentina on Saturday and hope Argentina can beat Chile to keep their slim hopes of claiming a third straight South American Championship alive. Argentina will face Chile on Sunday. CHILE 44 (Brandon Tobar 3, Nick Doberer 2, Luis Pizarro, Daniel Polanco, Thomas Garrido tries; Mitch Black 6 goals) defeated BRAZIL 22 (Lucas Pereira, Jorge Cabral, Alyfer Vinicius, Ivan Mancini tries; Zach Grundy 2 goals, Lucas Pereira goal)

Draw for the competition South American Championship November 29: Chile v Brazil November 30: Argentina v Runners up (Chile v Brazil) December 1: Argentina v Winners (Chile v Brazil) Other matches: November 30: Colombia v Camioneros December 1: Colombia v Basur Livestream Link for Chile v Brazil

The 4th iteration of the South American/Latin American Championship kicks off on November 28 featuring Brazil, Chile, Colombia and hosts Argentina. For a number of the participants, this will be the first time they have played since Colombia held the tournament in 2022. Match ups will be announced in the coming days, though my understanding is the competition will feature two rounds (Semis & Finals) Results from the last tournaments: 2022: Brazil 20 - 18 Chile Chile 34 - 14 Colombia Brazil 56 - 0 Colombia 2018: Brazil 52 - 14 Colombia Argentina 28 - 16 Colombia Brazil 22 - 20 Argentina 2017: Semi Finals Argentina 36 - 6 Colombia Chile 58 - 4 Brazil Finals Chile 32 - 12 Argentina (1st Place Play-Off) Colombia 22 - 18 Brazil (3rd Place Play-Off)

England v Spain match replay Game was very close at halftime.

The deal is between Leigh and Reebok Teamsports, which is run by Sports Hub in the UK as the licensee. Considering Sports Hub is also the licensee for Patrick, and formalised the Leigh deal for 2024, it is either a renewal or an amendment to the current business arrangement. Now whilst it is Sports Hub who is doing all the heavy lifting, ultimately Reebok Corporate would have had to sign off on the deal. Reebok, like most major sports brands, are very strict with regards to what sports teams wear their logo. Sports Hub must have been able to put forward a good business case for Reebok where they felt it would be beneficial for them otherwise it would be Patrick or New Balance on the kit for next year. Are Leigh hamming the importance of the announcement a bit? Sure, but it's certainly not a bad thing for a recognisable brand, like Reebok, to be associated with the code.

There was debt, though it was manageable, especially with the partners attracted. The issue for Brazil was the changes in qualification for the RLWC. Off the back of 2022's appearance and the news that Brazil would be guaranteed a spot at France, many existing sponsors signed on at larger amounts, as well there were new coming into the mix. The removal of that guaranteed spot was the first hit for Brazil, then announcement of the qualification process, which meant Brazil would have to go to the US, try & win 2 knock outs before having to play in an undefined World Series, saw many of the remaining commercial partners pull out. The fact that the only coverage that could be guaranteed was a YT live stream for the Qualifiers, has made it hard for Brazil to raise the funds needed to afford the trips. There has also been a compounding effect which has upset some of the core players, which doesn't help either. Understandably some have put going to the RLWC into the too hard basket.

Davis County Knights are the latest team formed in Utah. Club intends on having both men's & women's sides. https://www.instagram.com/p/C6uNwIBuhcq/?igsh=MWk4ZmhqYTc2amo4Nw==

Rugby League United (North East) has released its draw for 2024 Just Utah left in the Men's competition.

Florida Rugby League Men's draw: June 1: Atlanta Rhinos v South West Copperheads Tampa Mayhem v Jacksonville Axemen June 8: Atlanta Rhinos v Jacksonville Axemen Tampa Mayhem v South West Copperheads June 15: South West Copperheads v Atlanta Rhinos Jacksonville Axemen v Tampa Mayhem June 22: Tampa Mayhem v Atlanta Rhinos Jacksonville Axemen v South West Copperheads June 29: Jacksonville Axemen v Atlanta Rhinos South West Copperheads v Tampa Mayhem July 20: Atlanta Rhinos v Tampa Mayhem South West Copperheads v Jacksonville Axemen July 27: Florida Rugby League Championship August 10: Eastern Championship August 24: USARL National Championship

What about the Utah Rugby League? The USARL is trying to create smaller more sustainable competitions which are generally state based (with the exception of the north east, as the states there are geographically a lot smaller). Three of the four leagues are already predominately focused around a state (California, Utah & Florida) and the main reason why the PCRL is not called the California Rugby League is the fact that there was a previous CRL they hold the registered trademark.

It's a great outcome. Nice to see the new USA Women's Championship will also benefit from the new structure. Originally it was only going to have 6 teams (3 California / 3 Florida), now NY State Queens & teams from Utah are able to take part in a structure similar to the Men's. Not that the Utah RLA was being held back by the PCRL, but it's nice seeing them being promoted and on equal footing with the other 3 leagues. Means PCRL can focus on California & helping Oregon now, whilst Utah has been putting feelers into Arizona.