SWINTON LIONS say their IMG ranking belies the significant strides made at the club over the last 12 months.

A rebrand last year has seen a greater focus on their one club, one vision, with their women’s team tasting success and new men’s coach Paul Wood building a young team.

Explaining their score, the Lions said in a statement: “Our Finance score went down from 1.25 to 1, which is reflective of playing in League 1 in 2025 with less matches and smaller crowds, which puts more pressure on the club’s directors to address shortfalls – this being despite significant economies being made against player spend.

“It’s a somewhat disappointing fact that if Trafford’s population had been 250,000 or above, rather than its actual of 241,000, we would have scored another 0.5 of a point. 

“The fact that our Foundation delivered programmes in four local authority areas of Greater Manchester in 2025 is not recognised within the IMG system – a point we argued against but without success. Nonetheless our Lions Foundation continues to punch significantly above its weight in respect of social impact outcomes and is a shining light for us all to be proud of.

“Next year Swinton Lions will celebrate its 160th birthday, and despite having played the last 33 years outside of our traditional boundaries, we continue to be a relevant force both in the sport of Rugby League and within the communities we serve.”