Salford Red Devils call for further ‘due diligence’ in IMG system

Salford Red Devils have been left ‘disappointed’ to rank 12th in the IMG grades, even calling for ‘additional due diligence’ in the process.

By ranking 12th, Salford guarantee themselves a spot in Super League for the 2025 season, however, that rank represents a drop from eighth from the provisional grades in 2023.

The Red Devils have actually gained 0.17 points from those ranks to their newly-announced official score of 13.97, albeit all of that gain and some came from their improved performance score.

Salford had scored 3.3143 in the 2023 provisional grades but found themselves moving to 3.5429 this year, a gain of a larger margin than the club’s overall increase. As such, it’s evident that the club have lost points in other areas which likely accounts for their slide to 12th.

A statement from the club confirmed that they recognised the areas to improve and despite being pleased to secure Super League status, they were ultimately left “disappointed to rank 12th amongst our peers”.

Salford Red Devils question ‘level playing field’ of IMG system

After finishing fourth in Super League, it’s understandable why Salford Red Devils feel so aggrieved but that highlights that in an IMG world, it’s about how you play the system as well as the game.

That is something that Salford argue they cannot do though, thus putting them at a disadvantage which is why they have called for further due diligence in the process.

After revealing the breakdown of their scores within their statement, the club would outline their future concerns over the current grading system.

They argued: “IMG Grading was introduced to incentivise clubs to grow their fanbase, grow top-line non-centralised revenue, to better engage with fans, to be run in a best-in-class way, to invest both in their club and the sport in a sustainable manner, and to ensure strong governance.

“However, we believe that additional due diligence within the reporting system may be necessary to maintain a level playing field. As a community-owned club, we cannot rely on private equity to improve certain criteria, therefore achieving a Grade A status is critical to the future of the Club, as well as the City of Salford.”

There was a projection for positivity though as they confirmed that they can now: “look forward to an imminent stadium agreement with Salford City Council removing the limitations in both the Finance and Stadium criteria.”

The club would score just 2.15 out of 4.5 points on Finance and 1.8226 from 3 on their Stadium, missing out due to issues such as not having LEDs or a Big Screen, as well as their non-centralised turnover percentage being relatively low.