Rugby League Clubs

Wednesday 28th October 2026 Westminster Hall

11:00

[Valerie Vaz (in the Chair)]

I will call Jon Trickett to move the motion. I will then call the Minister to respond. I remind other Members that they may make a speech only with prior permission from the Member in charge of the debate and the Minister. There will not be an opportunity for the Member in charge to wind up, as is the convention for 30-minute debates.

[Jon Trickett (Normanton and Hemsworth) (Lab)]

I beg to move,

That this House has considered Government support for rugby league clubs.

It is a great pleasure to see you in the Chair, Ms Vaz. I am sure that you will be very firm with us, but very fair as well. It is also a special privilege to see the Minister in her place. I know that Barnsley, which she is very proud to represent, has a strong rugby league tradition.

I will start by explaining why this issue is so important and why it is such a great privilege to speak on this sport. As we know, there are two codes in rugby: rugby union, which is very familiar and offers great sporting spectacle, and rugby league, which also offers great moments of sporting prowess.

I vividly remember attending probably the most iconic rugby league final ever in 1968 with my dad and granddad at Wembley. It felt like the whole of the north of England came down to invade London—quite rightly, bringing our civilisation to the south. It was one of those great days when the rain never stopped—it had not stopped for several days. The pitch was a mud bath, literally covered in mud and water. It was very exciting, and in the last two minutes it was 11-10 to Leeds. In those days, I was supporting Leeds, as somebody who was born there, against Wakefield, where I have proudly been an MP for 30 years.

In the last minute, a penalty was given to Wakefield, right under the post. We would have expected it to be converted by the great rugby league player, Don Fox—who came from a great rugby league family and was born in my constituency—but the weather was atrocious. Everybody turned their back, because they could not bear to watch—Wakefield supporters hoping to hear the victory and Leeds supporters fearing what might happen. It was an amazing moment, and I will never forget it: he missed the penalty. That is not to show any disrespect to the Fox family, who were brilliant, but it meant that Leeds were victors. It is something that is fondly remembered. I am sure that I am the only Member of Parliament who was there at that great sporting event.

Rugby league offers great spectacle, but it has been treated in a way that has not been fully appropriate, and I fear for the future unless we can correct things.

[Ian Lavery (Blyth and Ashington) (Lab)]

I congratulate my hon. Friend for securing this important debate to Westminster Hall. My constituency, Blyth and Ashington, is well renowned for some world-class sportsmen—as it is commonly said, “You shout down the pit shaft, and world-class sportsmen will emerge.” Given my hon. Friend’s great wisdom and knowledge of rugby league, I wonder if he could say why, despite it being a traditionally working-class sport and despite the many opportunities, rugby league has not flourished areas such as mine in working-class Northumberland.

[Jon Trickett]

My hon. Friend is right that rugby league is a sport that grew up in working-class communities and especially in mining communities, so it is surprising that it has not taken root in his constituency. However, when we consider the discrimination that rugby league has suffered from over the years, it is maybe not so surprising. One of the things I will argue is that we need to do more to develop the sport across the whole country, especially in communities such as his. My hon. Friend is right, too, that whenever a player was injured in Featherstone in my patch, they would go to the pit head and shout down, “Send us up another forward,” or whatever it was, and one would emerge quickly, get changed and get on to the pitch. It was very much part of the mining tradition.

[Jim Shannon (Strangford) (DUP)]

I thank the hon. Gentleman for securing this debate. Rugby union was my game—I apologise to him—but rugby league has had a magnificent, transformative impact across the United Kingdom. It is the beating heart of towns, providing vital structure, mental health support and community pride for young people, yet it is facing a financial squeeze. Does he agree that the Government must extend rugby league funding to support the sport’s future and enhance the funding strategy to protect these invaluable community assets from the financial ruin that they face?

[Jon Trickett]

The hon. Member makes an important point, and I agree.

To develop a bit about rugby league, in the areas I am most familiar with, rugby league—and sport in general—can be the most important agency for social cohesion. Sport can provide something that brings everybody together, whatever their different points of view or life experiences. In my constituency, Featherstone Rovers have played for decades, and there is a massive amount of pride in the fact that we have that team. I will come to the difficulties they are facing, and I hope we can find a way forward.

Let me remind the House that the BBC used to cover rugby league more or less weekly on “Grandstand”. Most people in this room are probably not old enough to remember the famous commentator, Eddie Waring, but I do well. So familiar was rugby league in those times, because of the BBC coverage, that many of Eddie Waring’s favourite expressions were well known across the whole country. Mike Yarwood, who was a great mimic at that time, used to talk with Eddie’s accent—which I cannot do. He used to talk about “up and under”, which was one of the ways a ball could be kicked. More importantly, when somebody was sent off, his favourite expression was, “Well, he’s been sent for an early bath”—I very much hope that you will not send me for an early bath today, Ms Vaz.

Rugby league ought to be a nationally recognised sport. I will come to the discrimination and the problems with television in a second, but let me remind the House that anyone who wants to watch rugby league on TV now has to go to two separate pay-per-view channels. It costs £61 a month, which is 5% of the total income of a person living on the minimum wage. People are being priced out of the spectacle, which is a great shame, because it is leading to the atrophy of the sport across the communities where it ought to be played. It is also stopping us from spreading rugby league further—I will come back to that in a second.

Rugby league was a product of the class system that operated in sport in those days. The so-called gentlemen, who did not need to be paid, would play rugby union. Those who were too poor could not afford to play rugby union, so rugby league was set up, so that players could be paid. That was the start of rugby league as a code; but the truth is that the divisions that existed then continue today.

I have identified one or two statistics that may surprise the House. If we look at the honours system, eight rugby union players have received a knighthood; there have only been two from rugby league, one of whom is the great Kevin Sinfield, who was knighted for his contributions to charity. That difference shows a level of discrimination. When we look at the national squads for rugby union, two thirds or more went to public school. I cannot find a single player for the national rugby league side who went to public school. It shows the class divisions, which surprisingly continue in sport after all these years.

It is disappointing that fewer than 40 universities have a rugby league side, whereas every single university that I can find has a rugby union side. Again, that shows that something is not quite working between the two codes. When it came to covid, as we know, sports were remunerated, but here is an astonishing fact: rugby union received about £130 million, whereas rugby league got £10 million or £11 million—ten times more went into rugby union from covid. I do wonder—perhaps the House would agree—whether those in the civil service making these decisions are often people who went to universities and schools that had rugby union, but have little comprehension of the importance of rugby league in areas such as mine. I think that demonstrates clear discrimination, and I hope that the Labour Government are aware of that—if they were not, then they are now, because I have drawn it to the Minister’s attention.

I want to move on to the situation facing Featherstone Rovers. Wakefield, which I now represent, has the honour of having three separate professional rugby league sides: Wakefield, Castleford and Featherstone. Unfortunately, due to bad management, Featherstone has gone into administration, and we have been struggling to find a way to bring the Rovers back to life. The team is the core of the people of Featherstone’s identity, as was mining—mining was stripped away many decades ago, but references to mining can still be seen everywhere in the township in Featherstone. The rugby league side, Featherstone Rovers, is a matter of great pride, and the fact that it went bankrupt and there is nobody playing on the pitch at the moment is heartbreaking for so many people I represent.

Gradually, we have been putting together a plan to try to bring Featherstone Rovers back to life. That has been difficult, and I have spent many hours trying to achieve it, but thanks to the recent appointment of a new chief executive at the Rugby Football League, we are now making progress. The RFL has said that it is prepared to help to acquire the assets, bearing in mind that there is a stadium with buildings around it and several acres at the back of it. The administrator has been difficult, but he has come to the view in the end that, because it is a community asset, he is prepared to sell it for slightly less than he might have thought it was worth in a completely commercial sense. We think that it can be acquired for about £1 million. When Labour was in charge of the council—it has changed hands recently—it put aside several million pounds for each of the three rugby league clubs. There is £700,000 still unallocated to Featherstone, and the council, under its new management, has now said that a substantial part of that, possibly half a million, will be made available to the rugby league for it to be able to acquire the assets.

Here comes the interesting part, because in Featherstone, thanks again to the Labour Government, we have something called Pride in Place, and we have been allocated £20 million over the coming ten years. I am a member of the Pride in Place board, by virtue of being the local MP—I do not know if I need to declare an interest, but I do in any event. The board has said that it is prepared to make a substantial contribution to the acquisition of the stadium and the surrounding land. It has been difficult to put this together, but the board is unanimous, and, led by the by the chair Kay Binnersley, we are now in a position to say that, when the money arrives from the Government in the next financial year, it can then be made available to the RFL.

I have met the new chief executive of the RFL, who is a dynamic and progressive individual, and we have agreed that we want to create a partnership between the Pride in Place board and the RFL to try to take this whole thing forward. That is desperately important, because without Featherstone Rovers playing, it has not been easy to create a fixture list, because there will be one less team than is required to set up the fixtures. There is an urgency to this. I have to say that it has been frustrating dealing with the RFL over the last year and a half on this matter, as it went from one temporary chief executive to another, but now it has a decision maker in place, and I am confident that he is determined to make this happen, and clearly he needs to do that for all the other teams in the rugby league.

[Mark Sewards (Leeds South West and Morley) (Lab)]

I could not agree more with my hon. Friend’s point about Pride in Place. I commend his efforts with the Pride in Place board. I have done something similar in my constituency. Our Pride in Place Farnley East board is giving money to Farnley Falcons. The club is at the heart of our community, bringing in young people from across the constituency and further afield. Will my hon. Friend join me in encouraging all those with Pride in Place boards to give some money to local rugby league clubs?

[Jon Trickett]

Many years ago, as a builder and plumber, I did lots of work on Morley Labour rooms, which my hon. Friend is probably familiar with to this day—that is completely by the by.

My hon. Friend is right that Pride in Place is there to give or reinforce pride in communities, now from the bottom up, with local people deciding what they need. Rugby league is part of that, but decisions needs to come from the community, not from above. In Featherstone and other areas, local councils need to be aware that their rules and codes do not apply to Pride in Place, although they currently manage the finances. The board itself has to decide the priorities.

We have a vision for a town of sporting excellence, bringing together all existing services. That could mean education, for which there is much to do in Featherstone, or health services, as there are many people with long-term illnesses and mental health problems. We have a vision for a town built around sporting provision, reaching out to the various cultural, health and educational needs of Featherstone people. They may have different views and experiences in life, but the one thing they have had is Featherstone Rovers, so it is important that the club is brought back together.

Our vision is for a renewal of the town, building on its existing pride, so that it is a place where people are extremely proud to live. They will be able to join in social and cultural activities as well. That all requires Featherstone Rovers to be brought back. We understand that the RFL cannot own the assets for ever, because other clubs will begin to resent it. The other clubs need to understand that, without Featherstone Rovers playing, they will not have a functioning league. It is important that the RFL does the things that the chief executive has said he wants to do.

The Labour administration at the council put in place a resilience fund. We have had different figures from the current leadership of the council, but I believe that there is still £700,000 in the kitty, with £500,000 going to the RFL. The other £200,000 will be needed for renovations to the stadium. I have now explained the background. It has been helpful for me to speak about rugby league in general, including the discrimination that it suffers and the situation in Featherstone.

As I said, I am delighted to see the Minister in her place, and I will press her on three matters. Could the Department consider carefully the RFL’s bid for funding? We need to develop the sport and take it into new areas. Many people are hungry for that kind of sporting experience. Secondly, could she take a close interest in order to ensure that the partnership I have described between the PIP board and the RFL proceeds at speed? We have an empty stadium and people asking what has happened to their team.

I have a final point. The problem for rugby league is that the feedstock has been cut off—that is, the ordinary kids who watch sport on TV and who live in poorer families. A lot of rugby league clubs are in deprived communities, such as Featherstone, where people are not able to pay for pay-per-view TV, so they do not see their heroes and they do not see the sport, its code or how it is played. That leaves us with a problem.

The Department has the power to list sporting events. It is disappointing and tragic that the rugby league world cup, which is happening right now, is not on terrestrial television. Of course, the BBC says that it has a deal to broadcast the event on the radio, but listening to it on the radio is not the same as watching our heroes on the pitch, as I did at 17, when I watched the match that I referred to earlier.

Will the Minister consider carefully whether we can list some of those matches so that communities everywhere can see the great sport that is rugby league? I look forward to hearing what I hope will be a positive response.

11:20

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (Stephanie Peacock)]

It is a pleasure to serve under your chairship, Ms Vaz.

I congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for Normanton and Hemsworth (Jon Trickett) on securing this debate. He is a constituency neighbour of mine, and, as a fellow Yorkshire MP, I know how important rugby league is to his area. He is such a champion for the sport, both in this place—as he has shown this morning—and beyond.

For over 130 years, rugby league has made a huge contribution to our society. Week in, week out, local people come together to support their clubs, their children’s teams and the players. Rugby league clubs are places where thousands of people play sport and get active every week. My hon. Friend spoke passionately about the impact of rugby league in post-industrial towns such as those we represent. He was right to say that I am very proud to represent Barnsley South in Parliament. We have fantastic grassroots teams in Barnsley, such as the Dearne Valley Bulldogs and the Dodworth Miners. This week, the Dodworth Miners under-12s became the first junior rugby league team ever from Barnsley to win a league and cup double, and I am sure the whole House will join me in congratulating them.

We see such teams all across the north of England, and the vital role that they play is reflected in the interest in today’s debate. We know that community sport, and especially sports such as rugby league, can play a major role in building confidence and teamwork, supporting the life skills of future generations and improving community cohesion. The social value generated by community sport and physical activity is vast—in excess of £122 billion a year—and every £1 spent on sport by rugby league community clubs generates a social return of more than £4. Such figures underscore the vital role that sports such as rugby league can play in driving positive public health and societal outcomes. That is why the Government believe that someone’s access to sport should never be determined by their postcode, background or gender.

[Jon Trickett]

The Minister is right to raise gender. It is fair to say that in the dim and distant past, rugby league was kind of a male sport, but now there are women’s teams all over the country, including in universities. We are very proud that Featherstone Rovers has one of the most successful women’s rugby league teams in the country. I thank her for giving me the opportunity to celebrate their success.

[Stephanie Peacock]

My hon. Friend is absolutely right and makes a really important point. That is why, as Sports Minister, I have set up the women’s sport taskforce. I will say more about women’s sport later in my speech.

The single biggest thing most likely to get a child active in sport is watching it live. If kids cannot watch their rugby heroes, they are far less likely to pick up a rugby ball. My hon. Friend is a huge champion for his local club, Featherstone Rovers. Featherstone Rovers has been at the heart of its local community for many years, and the uncertainty since it entered administration has hit the town hard. I commend the collective efforts of my hon. Friend, the local community and the RFL to revive the club.

Indeed, I met my hon. Friend to discuss this issue earlier in the year. As he mentioned, I understand that Wakefield council has set out proposals to provide £500,000 of emergency funding, match-funded by the RFL’s resilience fund, in a bid to get the team back on the field by 2027. Under those proposals, the likely scenario is that the RFL will take control of the ground and lease it to an ownership group.

On Pride in Place funding, power is being put in local hands through the resident-led Featherstone neighbourhood board, which is working with the local council and, of course, the constituency MP, my hon. Friend. Although spending choices rest locally with that board, I am fully supportive of local communities choosing to use the funding to protect and revitalise vital sporting institutions such as Featherstone Rovers, and I will raise that with the relevant Minister from the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government.

I have seen at first hand the importance and impact of rugby league, having taken part in the Yorkshire versus Lancashire match at the Labour party conference at Everton stadium. I was joined by my hon. Friend the Member for Leeds South West and Morley (Mark Sewards), who is in attendance today, and I am pleased to report a Yorkshire win. It was a great opportunity to showcase the sport and to learn more about its work with Community Integrated Care, a registered charity that supports people with learning disabilities, autism, mental health needs and dementia. It was a great opportunity to talk to the RFL, and I look forward to meeting members again soon.

Sport England has committed £15.7 million to rugby league up to 2029. In the constituency of my hon. Friend the Member for Normanton and Hemsworth, that support is already delivering on the ground, funding new facilities at Hemsworth Dragons and pitch maintenance at Rycroft Hammers. Nationally, we are directing £400 million into upgrading grassroots sports facilities, deliberately prioritising the areas with the highest levels of deprivation and inactivity. My hon. Friend highlighted the RFL’s bid for funding the sport, facilities and community programme. I cannot make spending commitments today, but I would be happy to discuss that further with him and the RFL.

My hon. Friend made an important point about broadcasting, and I have heard his concerns. Under the listed events regime, the Challenge cup final remains protected on free-to-air television, but I acknowledge the concerns raised before the world cup. The Secretary of State expressed that she was disappointed. There was a last-minute agreement that the BBC would carry highlights, but I appreciate concerns that that did not go anywhere near far enough. We must help sports rights holders to strike the right balance between broadcasting revenue that keeps clubs solvent and ensuring that matches remain accessible to the public.

On the subject of watching England play, this time last year I was pleased to be cheering on England at Wembley as they played in the Ashes. The team are now down under to compete in the world cup. I wish them all the very best as they prepare for their final pool game in two days’ time.

The value of rugby league goes well beyond the 80 minutes on the pitch. Through our £330,000 investment in Rugby League Cares, current and former players are in our schools and towns having open and honest conversations with young men about mental health, isolation and loneliness. My hon. Friend was right to mention the social impact of the sport. Over the summer, I was delighted to go to the home of the Castleford Tigers to meet Rugby League Cares and Men in Sheds, seeing at first hand the powerful role that sport, including rugby league, plays in tackling social isolation and loneliness.

I have heard my hon. Friend’s concerns about honours, which he has put on the record. I know that the Secretary of State is on the record as sharing those concerns. We have all witnessed the extraordinary bond between the late, great Rob Burrow and Sir Kevin Sinfield—a reminder of the loyalty, courage and compassion that define the rugby league family. We are seeing the same spirit drive the growth of the women’s game, through initiatives such as RugBees and the inspiring expansion of the wheelchair super league. Just a few weeks ago, the Secretary of State visited Leigh Sports Village to support Sinfield during a leg of his “7 in 7” endurance challenge, in which he ran seven ultramarathons in seven days. Sinfield’s runs raise awareness and funds for motor neurone disease in honour of his former teammate and close friend, Rob Burrow.

I thank my hon. Friend once again for securing this debate and for standing up so effectively for his community and his sport. I look forward to working closely with him and the RFL in our coming meeting to ensure that rugby league gets the fair treatment, support and long-term investment it so richly deserves.

Question put and agreed to.

11:28

Sitting suspended.