BRADFORD BULLS have been promoted to the Wheelchair Super League for 2026.
The top flight will have eight teams despite Warrington Wolves, who were initially slated to return, rowing back earlier this year.
From five clubs in 2024, Edinburgh Giants and Sheffield Eagles debuted last season and Bradford will do likewise next season, joining champions Halifax Panthers plus Hull FC, Leeds Rhinos, London Roosters and Wigan Warriors.
The Bulls topped the Championship East section of the split second tier but were beaten in the play-offs by Rochdale Hornets, who went on to lose the divisional final to Castleford Tigers.
The Championship will become a single division of eight teams next season and take a further national dimension with the addition of Gravesend Dynamite, who previously played in a southern competition.
It is at third-tier, League One level that a regional split will be introduced, with northern and southern conferences to be formed.
Chris Godfrey, the RFL’s national inclusion manager, said: “Congratulations to Bradford Bulls for the quality of their application to join the Wheelchair Super League in 2026.
“It’s going to be an exciting year for the Bradford club with the return of Kurt Haggerty’s team to the (men’s) Super League, and the Bulls have been a consistent presence in wheelchair rugby league for many years.
“The development of the wheelchair rugby league pyramid has been one of the success stories of the sport in recent years, and that’s reflected by the fact we will have two genuinely national eight-team competitions kicking off in 2026, with League One split into northern and southern conferences, and a number of other development competitions underneath.
“It means we’ll have more teams and players involved than ever as England prepare to travel to Australia in the autumn of 2026 to defend the World Cup.”
Wheelchair Super League: Bradford Bulls, Edinburgh Giants, Halifax Panthers, Hull FC, Leeds Rhinos, London Roosters, Sheffield Eagles, Wigan Warriors
Wheelchair Championship: Batley Bulldogs, Castleford Tigers, Gravesend Dynamite, Hereford Harriers, North Wales Crusaders, Rochdale Hornets, Wakefield Trinity, York Knights