Featherstone Rovers issue latest update on financial woes as 2026 plans outlined
Photo: Allan McKenzie/SWpix
Featherstone Rovers remain hopeful that they will field a team for the upcoming 2026 Championship season, but admit they are still working through their troubling financial crisis.
The Championship side have been plunged into financial woes this autumn. Back in September, the club were hit with a winding-up petition over unsettled debt. Since then, Love Rugby League revealed their players were told they might not be paid for the rest of the calendar year, while last month, LRL also reported a group of players from their 2025 squad were considering legal action against the club in an effort to recoup unpaid salaries.
Their financial woes also come amid the departure of club chairman Paddy Handley, citing ‘varying agendas’ over the club’s future.
‘We can again confirm we are aiming to have a team competing in the league’
News of their hopes of fielding a team for the upcoming season comes with the full 2026 Championship fixtures being revealed, with the Rovers included in a new 21-team structure, but they are still very much in the midst of their financial crisis.
“Rovers can confirm that the club has been included in the Betfred Championship fixtures for 2026, although the club is still currently in the process of working through its financial problems,” the club said in a statement on their social media platforms.
— Featherstone Rovers (@FevRoversRLFC) December 2, 2025
“We had hoped to have been able to provide an update before now, but the process is taking longer than we had hoped as we continue to work with our professional advisors. The club is hoping this process can be concluded shortly and provide more information as soon as it is able to.
“In the meantime, we can again confirm we are aiming to have a team competing in the league and hope that fans will be eagerly looking at both home and away fixtures.”
Rovers will face West Yorkshire rivals Batley Bulldogs in the opening round of the 2026 campaign, with the game scheduled for Sunday, January 18th, and a week later will take either Brighouse Rangers or Lock Lane in the second round of the Challenge Cup.
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