London’s win over Hull, their first in 11 attempts this season, has provoked quite a lot of discussion. The merits of London in Super League have been debated endlessly since the start of the season, in a way that, to be honest, I find slightly baffling.
Why? Almost no sports fans are as hostile to new fans as rugby league supporters seem to be. Given the support that rugby league has and the declining attendances, especially below Super League, this is even more bizarre. But you only have to look at any rugby league social media to see people complaining that “southern” teams suck money away from the “heartlands”, or that non-traditional clubs are of no value to the sport, and even that there shouldn’t be any rugby league teams outside the North! I accept that this is not all, or even necessarily a majority of rugby league fans, but it is far more prominent than in, say football. Or union.
London’s crowds are around 3,500 for this season, and they do have a very dedicated fan base. When I was at university in Reading, I watched them regularly in my third year (including away trips to Barrow and Swinton) and got to know their fans well. The club is actually a good example of how we can grow rugby league. The fans are from very diverse backgrounds – some, but only a few are “ex-pats” northerners, living in London and watching the sport they grew up with. Others, like me, learnt the game from family connections to the north, and just enjoy having somewhere to go and watch. But there are also Union converts, people who came to one code through the other, and stuck around. Others have come from other sports, and one or two were introduced by friends and family as a day out. What kept me coming back was that their fans were, on the whole, very friendly and welcoming, so after going once because I had nothing to do one Sunday afternoon, I went back again and again. This is obviously a factor in the dedicated fan base they’ve built up, as it is if nothing else and very enjoyable and sociable place to spend an afternoon.
That said, they are a good example but not necessarily a good model. Their community outreach is far too weak. There is nothing in local news, no advertisements anywhere to be found, and links with local businesses are nowhere near good enough. They don’t reach out to local schools enough, although they do some work with local clubs. Most people who live around the area where they play would
have no idea they had a local top-flight rugby league team. Rugby league is a small and tight-knit community in the south, and they cannot afford to make do with that community – expansion is a must. The closing of their academy is a huge blow as well, though given the money they have to work on and the fact that IMG does not incentivise it, this is not exactly surprising. Relationships with other sports teams appear not to be brilliant either, and it is much easier to get a sports fan watching another sport than to turn someone into a sports fan. In fact, they seem to view the Skolars, London’s other professional club, with contempt bordering on hatred, which is not conducive to growing the sport in an area where it is already a minority.
One final point – IMG has been spectacularly unhelpful here. Catalans were given the freedom to expand, grow, and develop without fear of relegation. If IMG are to stop traditional promotion and relegation, then that is the only possible justification. Instead, London will play this season with very little incentive to spend or develop, because they are relegated anyway!
In summary: yes, London are good for the Super League, and yes, IMG’s new system has been deeply unhelpful to them and the sport. But their non-sporting elements, promotion, outreach, and relationships with outside groups, must get a lot stronger, or they will get overtaken.
Written by Thomas Haynes (Site contributor & Hull KR fan)
Gerrim Onside! 
Leave a comment