The findings of the club-led Strategic Review undertaken by the Rugby Football League have been revealed with a total of 144 recommendations made.
Commissioned back in March 2025 as the RFL went through big change following the exit of Simon Johnson and the temporary appointment of Nigel Wood, clubs called for a Strategic Review of the sport with Wood the man elected to head that up.
That all came from an RFL Council Meeting almost a year ago with the observations and recommendations now published. Some recommendations cannot be published because some pertain to commercially sensitive matters, however, a 22-page document has been released by the governing body to provide information.
At the moment, these are just recommendations with an RFL Council meeting being held in March where matters will be then approved or knocked back.
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What was the Strategic Review all about?
Per the report, the Strategic Review Group comprised seven members with the secretary to the group being former rugby league referee Robert Hicks.
They state that the central philosophy of the findings has been “one of consultation with, and inclusion of, all major stakeholders, where appropriate.”
For the recommendations that get approved at the upcoming RFL Council, they should be adopted as soon as possible and “certainly by no later than December 2026”.
They also confirm that the expansion of Super League and a merged Championship were among the recommendations that have already been put in place.
Outlining their goal, the report states: “The intention behind the recommendations is to do the most good for well-run and appointed businesses. The aim should be that the economics of the sport are organised in such a way that well-run clubs playing in well-appointed stadia can achieve sufficient revenues to achieve break-even without over-dependency on benefactor income.”
What key recommendations will affect rugby league?
Broken down into 12 key areas, the report covers matters such as governance, all levels of the game, player production, commercial, France, international relations and finance among other matters.
The first recommendation is one that has already been hinted at in job interviews for the new senior figures in rugby league, with the RFL and RL Commercial set to align.
Another key point, recommendation 20, is that Super League clubs decision-making will be limited to matters only affecting that competition, not rugby league as a whole.
Recommendation 31 states that Super League should comprise 14 teams but the long-term plan should be to increase that figure, whilst recommendation 33 advocates for a top eight format up until the league becomes a 16-team league or greater.
There’s also a recommendation for the Challenge Cup Final to consider a new venue with Super League clubs entering at the round of 32 set to be the norm going forward, as is the case this year.
The full list of recommendations can be found here.
Eric T Cat
February 5, 2026 at 3:16 pm
All of which is fine, but the moment the big three clubs are inconvenienced all this gets tossed out the window, yet again. We’re not the only sport struggling, domestic Rugby Ynion is in a dire state,only their international game is worth anything, for those who can stomach it. Maybe the future of Rugby League/Union domestically involves a rapprochement and reintegration. I’d suggest calling it Union but playing League. A 1990s RFU commissioned report effectively suggested doing just that. All of a sudden we’d have the ability to field a 20-24 team Super League with national coverage. If they convinced the Welsh, Scottish, and Irish Inions to join they might have to create conferences like in US sports playing towards a Super Bowl equivalent. But not the French RFU, their actions in WWII and post-war are beyond the pale, no forgiveness ever for them!