Power without Purpose

On Wednesday, it was announced that the Chair of RL Commercial, Frank Slevin, had left his role; one that he had held since 2022. You would not need to be a genius to figure out that Nigel Wood would ultimately fill this role.

Ordinarily, I would reflect on Mr Slevin's legacy in his role at Chair of RL Commercial. However, given I did not know he even held the role until he resigned from it, such was his anonymity, that is not possible.

Mr Wood joined the RFL as a finance director in 2001, after a period as Chief Executive at Halifax, which started in 1995 and saw the club fall into financial difficulties to the extent that they required a Creditors Voluntary Agreement to be put in place by 1999.

Wood rose through the ranks at the RFL to become the governing body's Chief Executive.

His supporters will point to higher revenues, securing a record TV deal with Sky Sports in 2014, introducing the Magic Weekend and overseeing the introduction of Catalans Dragons into Super League (plus arguably the most successful World Cup we have ever seen in 2013 - though Sally Bolton also deserves credit as tournament director).

His work in developing the Rugby League Benevolent Fund and Rugby League Cares is also laudable.

His detractors will point to a declining profile, a proliferation in perceived conflicts of interests, a disastrous sponsorship arrangement with Stobart and a overseeing the calamity involving the RFL taking ownership of Odsal, which has been an albatross around the sport's neck ever since.

Mr Wood also had a spell in charge of the international governing body (a further situation likely to give rise to a conflict of interests). His successor, Troy Grant, took a not too subtle swipe describing Wood's reign as one characterised by "selfish, amateur administration, lack of vision, strategy and poor governance"

He returned to the RFL in March 2025, to act an interim CEO. His role was to head a "club-led strategic review". His review was intended to be completed by the RFL Council Meeting in July 2025.

Whilst many perceived it to be a temporary arrangement, the RFL statement did not at any point indicate that this placement was temporary, save for the use of the word "interim" within Wood's job title. And we all know the interim can turn to permanent quite easily.

Nigel Wood's appointment as the chair of RL Commercial, which tends to have three-year terms and can be renewed, suggests that a short-term stay is not on the cards.

Now holding senior roles at both the RFL and RL Commercial, it would seem that Nigel Wood has the opportunity to shape the future of the sport in the UK in whatever manner he sees fit. This begs the question, what is his vision?

That is a question which is very difficult to answer. As far as I can tell, Mr Wood has not given an interview to the press since re-joining the RFL in March 2025, leaving key stakeholders in the sport in the dark as to his plans. The club-led strategic review also seems shrouded in secrecy.

We have seen in politics leaders come and go who appear to have a determination to secure power but little idea of what to do with it when they get it. The absence of any pubic comment from Mr Wood may lead a sceptic to draw similar conclusions.

In a time where a closer cooperation between the NRL and Super League is referenced, where Catalans are forced to pay for away clubs flights and accommodation and our TV deal with Sky Sports and the BBC due to expire in 12 months, we approach a pivotal time for the sport.

In theory, the pressure is on Nigel Wood to deliver. In reality, the direction that the sport takes due to the voting system we have in place is controlled by the clubs. And given that Super League clubs votes carry greater weight, the sport's direction is directed by those clubs.

To narrow it further, it is controlled by a small group of men who run those clubs. To one extent, the role of the RFL Chair is that of a figurehead or puppet to act as cover for the actions of club chairmen.

In the words of Rugby League journalist Steve Mascord, the RFL is a governed body, not a governing body.

The decisions that this small group take will define the direction of the sport for years to come. With a history of infighting, small-mindedness and a lack of confidence in our direction, I am not persuaded that we are at the dawn of a new era but the attempts of resuscitating the corpse of an old one.