Super League clubs each face a significant six-figure reduction in funding next year after the competition agreed a revised deal with Sky Sports to reflect the lack of televised games throughout the coronavirus pandemic.
Rugby league is aiming to resume the English domestic season behind closed doors in mid-August after being on hiatus since March, and Super League remains conscious of how best to fulfil the terms of its bumper deal with Sky, seen by many as crucial for the sport’s long-term financial security.
The Guardian understands that each of the top-flight clubs – with the exception of Toronto Wolfpack, who do not receive any TV income – will receive around £280,000 less in 2021, after Sky and Super League agreed a revision of the deal that is worth approximately £37m to the sport every year. There were initial fears the reduction in funding would take place this year, at a time when clubs are facing huge financial problems, with no income because of the season being postponed. However, that extra hit will be delayed until next year, during which time the sport will have to renegotiate a new broadcast deal, with Sky’s contract expiring at the end of next season.
“It’s a huge mountain to climb, but the relationship we have with Sky is strong and thankfully a solution has been found,” one club chief executive told the Guardian. The sport was issued a £16m loan by the government last month, but many within the game fear that money will merely act as a sticking plaster.
A number of leading figures believe rugby league should use the shutdown as an opportunity to reshape the sport both structurally and financially, with a desire for the game to cut its cloth accordingly in the expectation that any new broadcast deal will bring in less income than the current arrangement.
Clubs are preparing to bring their players back from furlough and into training in the final week of July, with a three-week pre-season expected before matches resume. A number of proposals are on the table in regards to how the season concludes, but clubs are determined to hold the Grand Final before the end of the calendar year. The sport is aiming to minimise the impact on the 2021 calendar, with the World Cup in England viewed as a priority.
