LONDON BRONCOS owners Darren Lockyer and Grant Wechsel have admitted they were disappointed that the capital club were not elevated to Super League for 2026, but that their focus remains intent on making the top flight as soon as possible.

The Broncos lost out to Toulouse Olympique and York Knights in the selection process as the 13th and 14th teams to make up Super League in 2026.

And Lockyer has explained that a lot of time and money had gone into their application to join the top flight.

“When we first looked at this opportunity, it was based on being in the Championship and then through this process of expanding Super League to 14 teams, we thought ‘let’s have a crack at that’,” Lockyer told James Graham’s The Bye Round podcast.

“We put a lot of time, effort and money into our bid so we probably got a bit excited so when the decision came down then yes, it was disappointing, but we can understand why that decision was made and we’ve just got to get on with it.”

The aim now is to win the second tier, with head coach Jason Demetriou having a number of exciting new signings at his disposal including NRL stars Siliva Havili, Reagan Campbell-Gillard and Dean Hawkins.

“We’ve got to turn our mind to winning the Championship, increasing our grading points if it’s still going to be based on them,” Wechsel said.

“I’ve said to our guys that we just need to win on the field and win off the field and make sure we’ve got the points, so we’re 100 percent committed to it.

“Grading points is still the method as far as I understand. It hasn’t been outlined that if you win then you’re definitely up.”

Though the Broncos have also been linked to their Brisbane namesakes in the NRL, Wechsel shut down any such talk.

“There’s no relationship on ownership but there’s also nothing on staff or players,” he insisted.

“If they reach out to us and they want to do something, we’d love to host them in town for training or a dinner (while over for February’s World Club Challenge).”