THE Board of Rugby League Commercial has strongly recommended the sport’s clubs and community representatives to “seize the opportunity” presented by IMG’s Reimagining Rugby League.
These will be the first of the recommendations from which will be considered at Wednesday’s meeting of the Rugby League Council.
The Council gave overwhelming support to the realignment of Rugby League in early 2022 which led to the formation of RL Commercial, and again to the 12-year strategic partnership with IMG which followed.
Now they will vote on the first recommendation arising from that partnership, the introduction of a Club Grading system to determine membership of the elite club competition from 2025.
Frank Slevin, the Chair of RL Commercial, said: “As a Board, we are unanimous in offering the Club Grading model our full backing. We considered the model at our meeting earlier this month, before recommending it to the Board of the Rugby Football League for consideration and approval by Wednesday’s meeting of the RFL Council.
“We are all excited by the potential of this first recommendation, which is truly innovative in the changes it would make to the landscape of Rugby League’s competition structure – while ensuring that all clubs can thrive in that structure.
“There is so much positivity around the sport at the moment, with attendances up across the Super League and the Championship especially after an outstanding Easter weekend, new investment in a number of clubs, and new teams and players being attracted to the sport, especially in Women’s, Girls and Wheelchair Rugby League.
“The recommendations coming from the partnership with IMG are an opportunity to further fuel that positivity, and embrace a strategy which could transform the way in which Rugby League is viewed – which we are convinced is necessary for the sport in this country to not only maintain and increase its national and international relevance and credibility, but also to provide a platform for future growth.”
