Why rugby league is so fractured as ‘pie and pea lunch’ overshadows Wigan Warriors’ Paris plans

The sport of rugby league in the northern hemisphere is at a major crossroads and two events over the past week highlight that.

Whilst both events certainly have merit in and of their own circles, it is the most recent of those events that is the one that should be championed and advocated for as the true direction that rugby league should be going in.

The event in question has gone somewhat under the radar but its existence has been widely reported by French publication L’Indépendent.

On Tuesday, April 8th, senior figures from Catalans Dragons and Wigan Warriors met in Paris to discuss the possibility of playing a game in the French capital in 2026.

2026 will mark 20 years of Catalans playing in Super League as well as the competition’s 30-year anniversary with the game set to mark both occasions and underline the importance of a French presence in Super League, at a time when the discourse is suggesting that they do not contribute to the competition.

Why rugby league is so fractured as ‘pie and pea lunch’ overshadows Wigan Warriors’ Paris plans

Debate over how much Catalans contribute has raged in recent weeks but L’Indépendent’s article puts the facts and figures forward bluntly to state the case for Catalan’s inclusion in Super League, an article that Wigan Warriors just so happened to share on their social media.

The French outlet attacks the “narrow-mindedness of certain leaders”, accusing them of being “locked into protectionist thinking” whilst outlining that Catalans are paying up half-a-million euros in 2025 to pay for rival team’s travel expenses.

They also went on to lay out the facts regarding the average attendance at the Stade Gilbert Brutus across the past four seasons with that figure of 8,636, far eclipsing the four English Super League sides that they listed in Huddersfield, Salford, Castleford and Leigh.

Catalans coach Steve McNamara also hit out at critics of Les Dracs in recent weeks and even referenced the second of these two events that shape this article and highlight the immense split in rugby league.

After confirming that Catalans paid for Salford’s travel for last Friday’s Challenge Cup game, McNamara, who was championing Catalans looking out for themselves on account that “nobody else will”, said: “Whatever they were talking about at the meeting at Batley we will see what the outcome of that is but for me there is only one solution and that is to strengthen this club and continue doing so regardless of what anybody else thinks.”

That Batley meeting in question saw Championship and League One clubs meet under Nigel Wood’s ‘Strategic Review’ with the Bulldogs revealing that “healthy views were exchanged”.

Believed by some, and potentially McNamara, to be on the agenda was Catalans Dragons and what they bring to Super League – which quite clearly is a lot given the prospects of taking a game to Paris next year.

As for the Batley meeting, rugby league fans have found amusement in the second line of the statement which confirmed: “All Club representatives then enjoyed a Haighs Pie & Peas lunch,” with fans pointing out the contrast between the two meetings.

If rugby league truly is at a crossroads then opting for the path that takes the sport to the heights of playing in front of tens of thousands in Paris is surely more viable than the one that offers the heights of, as L’Independant would say’ “protectionist” thinking over a Pie and Peas lunch.