Oldham Super League bid

[Tim G]

33 minutes ago, shrewsbury roughyed said:

We’d be better off if Mary Poppins was organising it. Or even Julie Andrews.

Eddie Hearns should have been given a chance. But whilst we have teams who enjoy being big fish in a very small pond, nothing will change.  

[Anita Bath]

6 hours ago, Happyed said:

The concern is SL becomes a closed shop after the 14 next season. You can reasonably assume thats what the new clubs would ask for to give them time to consolidate- where does that then leave Oldham ?

 

as others have said- they’ve should’ve delayed until 2027 and based it on league position 

Precisely….The NRL model has been what SL wants for a while now. One protected league with the suits deciding on which teams can be added over time. 

[Bedford Roughyed]

16 hours ago, Tim G said:

Eddie Hearns should have been given a chance. But whilst we have teams who enjoy being big fish in a very small pond, nothing will change.  

The Hearns would have been SL only, the rest cut loose.  

[The Art of Hand and Foot]

I don't know if this has been mentioned,  but supposing Salford lose their superleague spot and york Bradford and Toulouse go up, as has been touted? That'll mean there will be 4 Lancashire teams, 2 French teams and 8 Yorkshire teams. Even if London go up instead of Toulouse, there's still only 4 Lancashire teams and 8 Yorkshire teams!????

[tandle]

i suggest you all read london broncos forum.

to find out whats going on. i think they will be the first new team in super league.

and then the amalgamation of the championship, and champ.1 

 

,

 

[ben]

Probably stating the obvious here, this is just a ploy by MR woods and co to put Bradford in S.L. Leauge, within two seasons, S.L. will go back to twelve clubs, not enough money from sky for fourteen, Bradford wont be one of the clubs to go down.

[jroyales]

What's so special about Bradford? They have had their day and sadly failed in recent years. Odsal is now one of the worst grounds in the league, and if IMG gave points for attendance, how many would they get?

London has failed. No ground of their own, were relegated before a ball was kicked when they were last in SL, so what has changed? Will IMG count against them again before a ball is kicked?

Toulouse, what do they bring to our game - zero! Sorry, a weekend out for our fans never reciprocated.

Let the growth clubs York and Oldham have their chance!

[Stevos Barber]

Simple answer Wood and Hetherington 

[tandle]

30 minutes ago, Stevos Barber said:

Simple answer Wood and Hetherington 

stevos thats what i said heathrington asnt gone to the broncos for a jolly.

what comes next funds cut for the championships clubs.

or funds cut all together, and the clubs cast adrift.

[jroyales]

Let it happen and we have "The Second Great Schism" with most of sooperdooperleeg goig bust.

[shrewsbury roughyed]

https://www.theguardian.com/sport/no-helmets-required/2025/aug/07/expanding-super-league-14-teams-clubs-idea
 

interesting from The Guardian. Pure coincidence that it’s illustrated with a photo of York. 

[ben]

You are right jroyales, Break away. Part one, too much for one post.

Can champ/lg1 clubs manage without there 80k and 30k handouts? If so read on, They breakaway, calling it The Rugby League, 1st and second division, 2 divisions of 12 clubs, more if poss, invite in the amateur teams, Have a challenge cup where all teams are in it from the off, The final to be played at different venues within the two divisions, keep the money in THE RUGBY LEAGUE, 1st division winners crowned champions, bottom two teams relegated, top of division 2 promoted,2,3,4, and 5th club play off for second spot in division 1, keeps the interest all season, bottom club in division 2 relegated if there is a team to take there place, GO back to winter rugby,(winters milder than they use to be),less injuries to players,players can have more time with families in good weather,crowds will increase, you will find floating S.L. speccies wanting to watch a game of rugby at any time of year, thats all for know more to come.

[Anita Bath]

Hopefully salford london and bradford all in SL…..all financial basket cases over the years. let SL take their problems with them.

[shrewsbury roughyed]

7 hours ago, Anita Bath said:

Hopefully salford london and bradford all in SL…..all financial basket cases over the years. let SL take their problems with them.

The way Salford are going it’ll have to be a seven a side comp. What a mess. Their fans deserve better. 

[RoytonRoughyed83]

Story in the Ipaper about Super League considering expanding to 20 clubs. Can't read it because it's behind a paywall but it's news

[glemiln]

Super League could expand to 20 clubs in the future as part of plans to revitalise the sport in the UK.

Slashing costs at the Rugby Football League (RFL) and regionalising the Challenge Cup are among the other targets identified in a strategic review led by the governing body’s controversial boss Nigel Wood.

Wood, who departed as RFL chief executive in 2018, was brought back to the top of rugby league in March after a coup led by Super League clubs Leigh Leopards, Leeds Rhinos and St Helens.

Wood has been installed as the chair of a new committee that includes Lord Jonathan Caine, Joanna Coates, Martin Coyd, Abi Ekoku, Dermot Power and Emma Rosewarne. He has also been appointed as senior executive director of the RFL and as chairman of Rugby League Commercial, after the RFL’s board was rocked by a series of resignations.

According to papers seen by The i Paper and circulated to clubs last month, Wood’s group has identified 13 key themes to focus on.

It wants to see Super League “open to any number of full-time clubs, based on financial viability and player supply with ambitions to grow beyond 12 teams, potentially to 14, 16 or 20”.

On 28 July, nine clubs voted in support of expanding Super League to 14 teams next year, with two clubs voting against and one abstaining.

The committee stated that “overseas clubs can be included, as long as commercial terms are fair, sustainable and beneficial to the wider competition”, while also identifying a “need to innovate through new formats, events and locations that can unlock growth and expand the league’s reach.”

It added that “technology and storytelling must work together to deepen fan engagement, immerse audiences in the action and attract new, younger fans” and have also signalled the need to create a “club support unit” for business operations that is “a centralised growth and quality team to deliver quality and experience”.

The committee believes the Challenge Cup needs to be “rationalised and regionalised”, with a permanent date for the final and for Super League clubs to be seeded and drawn away from home on the round of entry. It has also noted the consideration of a “Magic Weekend-type event for the round of 16/8 creating a new event for broadcast and commercial revenue”.

Under plans, Championship and League 1 clubs “should be organised to present the most compelling calendar”, with a review of their central distribution to take place and a “harder” salary cap to be considered according to their income.

On the theme of governance, it outlined the need to “create a simplified, cost efficient centre delivering for members”, and to “ensure the sport has clear leadership with a voice that speaks for the whole sport”.

On player production, the committee wants to “enhance coach education at community level and strengthen links between community clubs and pathway clubs”, as well as “expand access to overseas players and expand squad sizes”.

It also signalled a need to further deregulate the temporary movement of players and to focus on fewer higher quality academies in the future.

On the international front, the committee recommended staging annual autumn international fixtures and to “introduce an annual international club competition”.

It includes an intention to seek an agreement to a 10-year World Club Challenge with the NRL, and to “seek alignment to the NRL to demonstrate a long-term commitment to rugby league in the northern hemisphere”.

On broadcast and the season schedule, Wood’s committee included a desire to schedule matches to align with peak viewership times and to leverage the sport’s streaming offering Super League+ as a “new revenue-generating platform”.

The plan also notes the need to “develop an on and off-field ecosystem to elevate the fan experience, increase access to behind the scenes content” and to “expand the use of digital streaming and AI to deepen fan connection and engagement”.

A ”specialised expert group” is to be established to conduct a review of the women’s game and changes have been advocated in the men’s game to “improve competitiveness, simplify the game, reduce match official influence” and to “streamline disciplinary panels to keep more players on the field, ensure safety and reduce inconsistency”.

Wood’s committee has given the month of September to implement and prioritise its themes, and by December to finalise its report.

The i Paper understands the 13-point plan was presented to clubs by Jason Harborow, a former RFL executive who has joined Wood’s group. Harborow was the operations director of the 2000 Rugby League World Cup and spent nearly five years as chief executive of the Liverpool Culture Company.

Insiders have slammed the 13-point plan as “embarrassing”. One told The i Paper: “It’s like a child’s wish list if money was no object. There is no supporting evidence, data or substance whatsoever”.

A RFL spokesperson said: “The main agenda item for the July meeting of the Rugby League Council was a presentation from the Strategic Review Sub-Committee, which had been formed at the request of the clubs and charged with a thorough review of the sport.

“The presentation was positively received, underlining the depth and breadth of the work that had already been done – and also the amount still to be done. These ideas have already been developed in further meetings with the Super League, Championship and League One clubs, and the work will continue for the rest of this year until the next full Council meeting in December.”

[shrewsbury roughyed]

Not strictly to do with our SL bid, but Bill Quinn announced that as a club we stand with Salford and all Salford season ticket holders get free entry to Oldham home games for the rest of the season. Good move. A nice thing to do, money to be made from the bar etc, and potentially a means of building our own crowd long term. There was also a really genuine welcome from George to the visiting Salford fans in the bar before last Sunday’s game and previously. So proud of this club. 

[Oldham Valderama]

You've got to give credit to BQ on this one, the man's a class act. I've no affinity with Salford but the ###### that their fans have had to put up with this season is disgraceful so for Oldham as part of the wider RL community to try and give a little bit back is a wonderful gesture. 

Looking at the comments on the Facebook page I'm glad this seems to have gone down well with the Oldham faithful and I just hope there's none of this "well I've paid for a ticket why should a Salford fan get theirs free" malarky. For once lets all put that aside, we (Oldham) have a fantastic set up at the moment and Salford fans have quite frankly been $%&* on royally this season. Lets put club rivalry aside and pull together with our near neighbours to show that at least the fans still have some integrity even if the powers that be couldn't run a pee up in a brewery.

WELL DONE BQ!!!!!!!!!!

[RoytonRoughyed83]

Class act from Bill, this seems a different level in terms of clubs being destroyed by the owners but Oldham sports fans have know that pain of being at war with owners and rightly seen alot of sympathy and well wishes for Salford RLFC and Morecambe FC. 

Edited August 15 by RoytonRoughyed83

[Tim G]

Just read an interesting article about Sports England possibly stopping funds being distributed to the RL because they are investigating how Nigel Wood gained his position even though he had and still has connections with Bradford.   Apparently the role should be filled by an independent individual.  It's an online article from the Guardian.   Worth a read  

 

 

 

 

 

 

[jroyales]

That's Rugby League for you - jobs for the boys.

[sheddingswasus]

The full makeup of the 2026 Super League competition will be announced on Thursday, October 16 – five days after the Grand Final.

Aspiring clubs have been given a deadline to register interest by next Tuesday (August 26), with all formal applications to be completed and submitted by Friday, 12 September. Their applications will then be reviewed, with clubs first judged on all five pillars of IMG scoring (finance, fandom, stadium, performance, and community).

They will then be scored 'on their financial performance in 2025, their detailed sustainability forecasts for the 2026, 2027 and 2028 seasons, and their ability to field a competitive team in 2026 and beyond.'

This is to ensure a repeat of the financial crisis seen at Salford Red Devils this season.

Meanwhile, the independent panel will be chaired by the RFL non-executive director Lord (Jonathan) Caine and has been confirmed as having six other members: Abi Ekoku, Dermot Power, Tony Sutton, Graeme Sarjeant, Rhodri Jone

[Blind side johnny]

40 minutes ago, sheddingswasus said:

The full makeup of the 2026 Super League competition will be announced on Thursday, October 16 – five days after the Grand Final.

Aspiring clubs have been given a deadline to register interest by next Tuesday (August 26), with all formal applications to be completed and submitted by Friday, 12 September. Their applications will then be reviewed, with clubs first judged on all five pillars of IMG scoring (finance, fandom, stadium, performance, and community).

They will then be scored 'on their financial performance in 2025, their detailed sustainability forecasts for the 2026, 2027 and 2028 seasons, and their ability to field a competitive team in 2026 and beyond.'

This is to ensure a repeat of the financial crisis seen at Salford Red Devils this season.

Meanwhile, the independent panel will be chaired by the RFL non-executive director Lord (Jonathan) Caine and has been confirmed as having six other members: Abi Ekoku, Dermot Power, Tony Sutton, Graeme Sarjeant, Rhodri Jone

I do hope that the formation of a single league below SL can be announced before that date, otherwise eight clubs from the Championship and L1 will be forced to participate in a potentially pointless play-off exercise.

[Oldham Valderama]

This whole Super League 2026 set up lark is an absolute farce.

Unless BQ / MF / SL have already by now signed in the back ground a load of quality SL standard players but just not announced any of them how could Oldham (and in the same boat York / Bradford / Toulouse / London etc) possibly get a team ready in such a short space of time before next season starts to be competitive if you don't know whether your in the competition till mid October? 

As for the five pillars of IMG aren't they supposed to already do that and this worked wonderfully this season for Salford with all that's transpired there. 

Probably all irrelevant this as I wonder what odds you can get that after all is said and done Salford are biffed off into the Championship and the three teams going up to make up the 14 are York / Bradford / London. I'd say its a dead cert and probably already a done deal.

[tandle]

i reckon between toulouse /bradford /london.

but have any of these teams got a ground fit for super league ?.