
A number of changes have been made to the Super League competition for the 2025 season, including the introduction of the ‘Captain’s Challenge’. Here is a round-up of what we know.
‘Captain’s Challenge’
The ‘Captain’s Challenge’ was one of four law changes accepted by the Rugby Football League Board in December, allowing captains in all televised fixtures in 2025 – also including the Betfred Challenge Cup, and the Women’s Super League and Challenge Cup – to refer a range of on-field decisions to the video referee.
It has been a part of the NRL competition since 2020, and was also used at the 2022 World Cup in England. Each team is allowed one unsuccessful challenge in each fixture, and is only permissible in instances where the referee blows the whistle to stop play.
Rugby league decisions that cannot be challenged are: forward pass; roll ball; discretionary penalties (10m/marker offside, ruck infringements relating to the speed of the play the ball, tackled into touch or in-goal after the held call); the mark of a penalty, time wasting, dissent, deliberate forward pass; scrum penalties.
Other changes confirmed in December included contested drop-outs, with attempts that go out on the full over the touchline, or fail to make 10 metres, will now be restarted with a play the ball 10 metres out from the centre of the goal-line, rather than a penalty from in front.
The green card will now also apply to attacking players as well as defending players, while referees and video referees will now differentiate between active and passive players when awarding penalties for offside from a kick-chase.
Head contact regulations
Meanwhile, head contact regulations in Men’s and Women’s Super League, Championship and League 1 will remain as they were in 2024.
The RFL had previously proposed that tackles below the armpit would be mandatory in Super League and professional rugby league in 2025, while it was introduced to the community game last year. However, following a significant reduction in concussive and sub-concussive events in the Super League in 2024, measured by the widespread use of instrumented mouthguards, the rule will remain unchanged, having been confirmed in December.
Rugby League disciplinary changes
The game’s disciplinary system is also set for a huge overhaul in the 2025 campaign, with the introduction of a new points-based system to determine length of bans.
Players will now have points added to their own personal tally every time they are charged with an offence across the campaign, with the higher the grade, the more serious the offence and the more points given.
Essentially, as players incur more points, the length of their suspensions will increase, with repeat offenders at risk of hefty bans.
The points tariff is as follows:
0-2 – No further action
3-5 – Fine
6-8 – 1 match suspension
9-11 – 1 match suspension and a fine
12-14 – 2 match suspension
15-17 – 2 match suspension and a fine
18-20 – 3 match suspension
21-23 – 3 match suspension and a fine
24-26 – 4 match suspension
27-29 – 4 match suspension and a fine
30-32 – 5 match suspension
33-35 – 5 match suspension and a fine
36-38 – 6 match suspension and a fine
39-41 – 7 match suspension and a fine
42-44 – 8 match suspension and a fine
45-47 – 9 match suspension and a fine
48-50 – 10 match suspension and a fine
51-53 – 11 match suspension and a fine
54 + – 12 match suspension plus, and a fine
There are also a number of factors that will impact points given or in some cases, taken away, including causing injury by misconduct, dismissed players and appeals.
