Super League bosses deliver emphatic verdict on possible 15-team league

Super League officials have insisted that any talk of expanding the competition to 15 teams in 2027 is wide of the mark – with no special measures to be taken to shoehorn London Broncos into the competition if their IMG score falls short.

It is now just three months until supporters discover what clubs will be in the top flight next year. As things stand, the IMG gradings criteria will once again determine who makes up the places in Super League.

But with London Broncos spending aggressively and making strong noises about their plans if they are in Super League, the Championship leaders have been warned that there will be no extra measures taken to ensure they get in.

‘No intention’ of 15 teams

Speaking to PA, RL Commercial MD Rhodri Jones insisted that while there is great potential for London under their new ownership model of Grant Wechsel and Darren Lockyer, they will not be given special treatment.

Jones also quashed online speculation which had emerged this year that Super League could go to 15 teams – which would almost guarantee London made the cut and were a Super League club once again.

He said: “We are fully aware of the noise around London and the potential of them coming into Super League.

“At the moment we are trying to get a better understanding of what the London Broncos’ business looks like on and off the field because all that contributes to their grading score. The determination on the construct of the league next year will be done on grading.

“Regarding the 15th club, we’ve looked at that possibility, can it be delivered and what would it mean, we’ve done all of that but at this point in time there is no intention to be a 15-team Super League next season.”

IMG alone will decide 14 teams

Super League created controversy last year when it expanded to 14 teams – by not having the 14 teams picked solely from IMG criteria.

Instead, an independent panel picked the two best clubs outside of the top 12 – but coincidentally, they were the teams ranked 13th and 14th, York Knights and Toulouse Olympique.

That process last year has again created suggestions that something similar could happen this time around, which would again benefit London in the eyes of many.

But Jones has appeared to confirm that the grading system – which has gone through some changes in terms of how and where points are now awarded – will be the only metric that decides the 14 teams, with no extra panel-led processes in place.

“There were tweaks in the grading system that we made at the start of the year and if any team in the Championship did as much as they could, there was a chance they could be in the top 14,” Jones said.

“That’s the bit of work that we don’t know at this point. If London have done absolutely everything possible to get as many points as they can, that will be reflected in their grading score. But in terms of changing the construct of the league or swapping a team for a team, that’s not on the table.”

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