Three rounds to go until the Super League playoffs begin, and it is difficult to know whether to keep your eyes fixed on the pitch or off it. Leeds sit top after their impressive win at York on Sunday afternoon ended Wigan’s 48-hour stay at the summit, but the Rhinos are embroiled in a two- or perhaps even three-way battle for the League Leaders’ Shield in 2026. The Rhinos and Wigan are level on points and have intriguing games against St Helens and Hull KR respectively this week.
Should either or both slip up, Warrington could yet come into the picture for a top-two finish but you would be forgiven for your eyes already veering past this coming weekend’s fixtures and to the penultimate round on two fronts. September arrives and with it the business end of the season, with Leeds and Wigan squaring off in a blockbuster showdown at Headingley that will, in all probability, decide top spot. The playoffs feel like they begin early this year with games of such magnitude – and by the time they meet in West Yorkshire on 5 September, Super League may also be transformed.
The possibility of the NRL investing in the top flight has proven to be the sporting summer’s longest-running saga: but we are now entering the championship rounds. Clubs decided to reject an initial offer from the NRL on Thursday, which would have brought in £7m for each of the next five years in return for equity in Super League. The feeling is clear: Super League is worth more – but how much more?
This is where things get interesting. Some clubs are far more keen to do a deal and land the NRL’s expertise, as well as their money, for not much more. The feeling among the most pro-NRL camps is that without the NRL, Super League will struggle to have a prosperous medium to long-term future.
But others are not so downbeat, and insist that Super League should hold out for a lot more money; transformative sums, in fact. The right answer is probably somewhere in the middle, with the reported £7m per year unlikely to change anything other than buffer the losses of club owners somewhat. Super League needs real sea change, not pocket-money level handouts.
We are now also into the final months of Super League being exclusively shown on Sky Sports, with the league’s long-standing broadcaster opting to take only three games per round next year. The location of the other four depends on the NRL deal; if it falls through then Premier Sports – which will show the World Cup this autumn – are interested. But with the NRL’s backing, a deal with Dazn becomes the favourite – which would yield little in terms of income in the immediate term, but perhaps more further down the track.
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