Salford Red Devils’ latest IMG problem as plans put in place for solution

Salford Red Devils’ financial struggles are evident for all to see but the club also have some IMG issues to contend with, and plans to resolve them have now been confirmed.

In just two days, Salford have a HMRC hearing with the club reportedly over half a million in debt, however, there are hopes that the Red Devils’ ownership will be able to secure a bridging loan to stave that off.

The uncertainty around finances has rumbled on ever since the announcement from the club’s new owners that they were debt free. That clearly was not and is not the case, however, Salford aren’t certain to be relegated just on account of their financial woes.

IMG gradings will determine who plays in Super League next year and whilst finance does account for 4.5 of the 20 points, Salford will not lose all their points in that metric barring the club completely going under.

Of course, they’re set to lose performance points due to their likely 12th-place finish but the decrease will be negligible so long as they can maximise points elsewhere.

Salford Red Devils’ big screen issues explained

One of the easy ways to maximise points, which Salford currently are not doing, is to have a big screen in place at the stadium.

Fans who have attended the stadium of late will notice a large gap where the big screen once stood and the reasons why have now been explained by deputy mayor Jack Youd, who has also outlined the plans for it to be remedied.

Posting on X, Youd gave a Salford Community Stadium – In Ground Screen Update, stating: “I’ve had a lot of enquiries (more than anything else SRD/Stadium related) about the in ground screen and here’s an update –

“In May a complaint was made direct to Salford Council about safety of the screen. Building control visited and have asked both Sale Sharks and SRD’s separate suppliers to provide a document from a structural engineer to say the weight of the suspended screen and the strength of the beam is safe. This hasn’t yet been received from either supplier.

“There’s two sides to every story and I’ve heard 3rd hand that the supplies don’t believe they need to supply the document etc. To try to bring this to a conclusion, I have asked council officers to arrange a joint meeting with stadium, clubs and suppliers to bring this to an end.”

Having a big screen is worth 0.125 IMG points and given Salford were just 0.39 points ahead of Toulouse in last year’s gradings, it’s fair to say that every point counts.

Despite that, Youd asserted: “Salford aren’t going to be relegated because there’s no in ground screen. Of the list of Salford’s problems this is as small as small fry gets”, which may well be true but when every point matters, leaving easy fixes on the table could be very costly.

Since initially published, Jack Youd has provided a further update, stating: Update – “We had a call with VME, (SRD screen provider) who have promised to send docs today. They had been waiting for SYNK (Sale Shark’s provider) to complete their paperwork and then submit everything together. We spoke to RFL who contract VME, they’re now speaking directly.”

Salford Community Stadium – In Ground Screen Update.

Ive had a lot of enquiries (more than anything else SRD/Stadium related) about the in ground screen and here’s an update –

In May a complaint was made direct to Salford Council about safety of the screen. 1/

— Jack Youd (@jackyoud90) June 23, 2025