Just use your IMGination

This week, the RFL and Super League announced a 12-year partnership with IMG (a global leader in entertainment, sport and fashion, per its own description). The full press release can be read here.

As expected, the press release is light on detail but heavy on buzzwords. "Strategically repositioning the sport", "maximise commercial potential", "build deeper relationships with fans". A lot of words, but not much meaning behind them.

The Substance

A better starting point would be look at the quantifiable points made by the press release. It refers to competition restructure, international distribution of media rights and a greater focus on streaming matches and a renewed social media push.

The reference to a competition restructure has garnered the most attention. Obviously. We're obsessed with tinkering in this sport. The prospects of this were played down by RFL Chairman Simon Johnson in an interview with Sky Sports on Thursday, insisting no such changes have been agreed. Although the assertion that IMG will start with 'a blank piece of paper' gives the hint that more change is coming.

The perception is that there have been a lot of changes to Super League structure since 1996. That perception is correct. Our format has changed on 13 occasions. Given that Super League is 26 years old, that is an average of one change every other year. Here are those changes in full

There is no question that our sport has its faults. Arguably the biggest problem is that we don't seem to know how to fix them. Why else would IMG be here? We now seem to accept that we need outside expertise. That doesn't seem a bad thing. I hope that IMG realise that our constant structure tinkering is not the answer. History has shown that whatever system that we use, our sport continues on its usual course.

RFL Strategy 2015 - 2021

The best way of comparing how we are doing as a sport is to look at what our aims were and how whether we have met those. Take a look at this RFL Strategy document, last updated in March 2019.

A lot of the aims are hard to quantify. For ease, let's look at the ones we can quantify. For example: "Build the Challenge Cup's reputation, sell out finals and drive interest in the competition." "A minimum of four opportunities for England teams per year". By 'opportunities', I assume that means fixtures! "Reinvigorate World Club Challenge".

I don't think it is unfair to say that none of these targets have been met. That is not entirely the RFL's fault. The covid pandemic and lack of cooperation from the NRL have rendered some of these aims impossible.

That being said, crowds for the Challenge Cup Final have dropped year on year. That is despite the 1895 Cup Final bringing in fans from two Championship sides. Despite this, we still have the unedifying sight of a closed upper tier at Wembley. This year, the final is at Tottenham, so we have nearly 30,000 seats less to sell. It remains to be seen whether we can even sell this out.

Where Next?

I'm sorry to say it, but we can be delusional at times. We call ourselves 'the greatest game' and react with disbelief and umbrage when other people don't agree. We will plonk teams in areas with no rugby league foundation and scratch our heads when they fail.

When IMG come in, I hope for a dose of realism. We do have a great product but delusions of our sport having a global footprint is for the birds. That does not mean that we cannot be a profitable a major sporting player.

The neglect of our current market cannot continue. Take Bradford for example. They have had over a decade of mismanagement yet still attract the highest crowds in the Championship of over 3,000. But, between 7,000 and 13,000 fans no longer attend, compared to the Bullmania peak. We have a latent fanbase here that is begging to be engaged once again. 

I recall listening to one of the excellent BBC Rugby League podcasts a few years ago, where the expression 'we need to fish where the fish are' was used. It's something that we can sometimes forget in our pursuit of grandeur.

That is not to say that we should not bother with expansion efforts. We should. But we need to be more strategic, sensible and patient. Let's look at Newcastle and the North East. We now have a full time club in Newcastle and amateur and junior participation in the sport is rising sharply. The decision to host several World Cup games in the city is therefore sensible as we try and lay foundations. It may take years, if not decades, but sensible, baby steps is the way to expand the sport.

I hope to see a renewed focus on the international game too. For the first time, we have competitive Pacific Island nations. It is no longer 'the big three', thanks mainly to NRL players choosing to represent countries of parental heritage. This is an opportunity like no other.

Sports such as cricket and rugby union have a mentality of international competition first, everything else second. That is because internationals attract more casual fans and more media interest. 'England' is an entity that anyone can get behind, far more so than a club name. The sooner we realise this and stop treating the international game as an afterthought, the better. 

IMG seem to have been given free reign over the sport to do as they please. With that brings pressure, but it also brings opportunity. With a little bit of imagination, there could be plenty to be excited about going forward, if we play our cards right.