BY JOHN DAVIDSON
IMG believes a lack of funding and investment in British rugby league is holding back the speed of progress, and that the NRL does want to create a stronger partnership with Super League.
Matt Dwyer, IMG’s Vice President of Sports Management, wants to see faster growth in the company’s work with rugby league. Asked what is the major roadblock limiting progress, Dwyer replied: “The main issue is funding.
“The sport has an amount of money that it can invest into growth,” he said.
“Like all sports, we would like to have more of that money so we can invest more. And right now, the sport doesn’t have the amount of money that you’d optimally like.
“Things that Rugby League Commercial is looking at is, what are the options for funding into this sport? But that’s the primary theme holding us back there.”
The British game is receiving around £18 million a year less into its coffers, compared with back in 2020, because of the reduced TV broadcasting deal.
Asked about the prospect of the NRL buying into or taking over Super League, as has been reported, Dwyer said the NRL is actively considering taking a greater interest in the British game.
“I think there’s a real willingness from the NRL to create a stronger partnership. That’s for sure.
“Now what form that takes is not something that has been fully evolved and developed as yet. And those conversations are very much Rugby League Commercial conversations.
“There’s only a couple of sources you can look at in terms of potential areas for funding. But you know, the way at the moment is we’re very much going, Okay what can the sport afford?
“What’s the best way for them to get that money to grow the sport? But if you want to supercharge or speed that up, then the sport does need more investment to be able to do that.”
Super League’s current deal with Sky runs out at the end of 2026.
Questioned about negotiations for the next TV deal and IMG’s confidence in getting more money from the broadcast rights in the future, Dwyer said: “IMG, Rugby League Commercial and the clubs are in constant dialog with Sky.
“It’s been a real focus of this last deal of how can we make sure we maximize the value for Sky going forward? And that’s really where our focus is at the moment, is ensuring we’re doing everything we can as a sport to do that for them.
“I don’t want to try and predict how the future is going to play out with the next broadcast deal, because it’s a tricky thing to do. The only thing, and what I’ve said to the clubs that we can control, is whether we’re the best partner that we possibly can be for Sky.
“And the bit that we can control is that that fan funnel creating as much interest for the sport as we possibly can. The bit that we can’t control is what ultimately Sky’s budget will be, and what the competitive dynamics will be in terms of what other players might be interested in the sport when the new deal comes around.
“That bit we can’t control, but the bit we can control is very much where the sport’s being focused on, which is where we can create the most value for them and try and grow our audience as much as we possibly can.”
