With the Grand Finals approaching next month, the sun is about to set on the Chinese Super League season, and while all 12 teams are heading into winter, one is facing a potentially grim situation.
With IMG’s controversial tiering system coming online next month, replacing the traditional promotion and relegation system from 2025, only the 12 clubs with the highest scores across a variety of on- and off-field metrics will qualify for the Super League.
Quick guide
Wigan secure a win with Leaders’ Shield
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wigan Needing one more win to retain League Leaders’ Shield after defeating Wolves 38-0 leeds at Brick Community Stadium. The home side’s win from seven games means that if they beat Salford in next Thursday’s final game of the regular season, they will confirm top spot in the Super League table and the most favorable route to the play-offs.
Meanwhile, Leeds’ heavy defeat means they face a tough trip to second-placed Hull City knowing they need a win to avoid missing out on the play-offs for the second season running.
Elsewhere, Mikey Lewis stars Kong KR beat profit to keep their hopes of winning the Shield alive in the final week. Lewis struck twice and scored four goals to seal an impressive 24-0 win for Rangers at Leigh Sports Village.
Winger Jon Bennison stole the spotlight from Tommy Makinson with his first Super League hat-trick. st helens They cruised to a 40-4 victory and stepped up their play-off bid castleford.
One thing IMG didn’t take into account when planning changes to the competition, however, was the club’s 24th spot in the provisional rankings. By winning promotion against all odds, London Broncos effectively knew they would be kicked out of the Super League at the end of the year, regardless of how well they performed due to poor results.
Even so, it should be simple. The London side knew their fate before the ball was even kicked, opting to play a season in the Super League with a part-time squad and expecting to be humiliated regularly, making IMG’s decision look all the more credible. However, with two weeks left in the regular season, London still has a chance of avoiding last place.
Ahead of the weekend’s games, they were level on points with 11th-placed Hull City with two games remaining, beating some of the league’s biggest teams along the way. This raises the question: what next for a club that is set to be excluded from the Championship by IMG and has no realistic chance of reaching the Super League in the next few years? Is this the end of the sport in the capital?
“I really didn’t know what to expect,” their coach Mike Eccles admitted. “I have not had a great year. This club will be completely different in every way. We have made so much progress but we will lose everything.
The Broncos picked up some key players on their impressive roster. Eccles said London only has seven players signed for 2025. Spending will be “significantly reduced”. “He doesn’t think we have a path back to the Super League at the moment,” he said.
London has often spoken out against IMG ratings. Last month, Hughes called for them to be scrapped, with Akers saying the Broncos’ progress justified them being granted an exemption to stay in Super League. He pointed to Wimbledon’s growing attendance at home and the fact that the club produces more homegrown players than many of its northern rivals.
“I’m delighted to have it named after me – you have to approach London differently,” Eccles said. “There have to be exemptions. It’s a different world here. We cut our cloth accordingly, we produce players that rival the best academies in the game, and we have a home to build. Things are different here. .
Expansionists may argue there is precedent for Catalonia Dragons, who finished bottom of the Superliga in their inaugural season in 2006 but avoided relegation; 18 years later they won the Challenge Cup and reached the Grand Final twice , and regularly attracts five-figure audiences in the south of France.
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But execution will not be suspended this time. Despite IMG acknowledging London as rugby league’s “sleeping giant” in December 2022, with the capital topping all statistical metrics, the Broncos will not only return to the Championship but remain at the top of their ratings for years to come Far below the required score.
“We still have a long way to go to get back to the Super League,” Akers said. “There are no eyes and ears in the Championship, no TV coverage and no investment. So what are you going to do, especially in London, where you have to pay players more? I’m not saying it’s impossible, but it will Very difficult.
However, Eccles is also keen to highlight the positives. Two years ago, London came close to being relegated from the Championship; now their homegrown squad is firmly established in the Premier League. The Broncos have shown that the Capitals have a place in the sport’s long-term plans, but IMG doesn’t think so.
“It’s clearly working – we’re showing it works on and off the court,” Eccles said. “Do you really want to throw this away? It’s a shame we can’t build on this. We don’t want the money, we just want an opportunity to prove that this club and this region has a place in rugby league. That’s just not the case. Homecoming. How hungry is the sport for London?
