13 Jul 2022

Sir Lindsay Hoyle to succeed Clare Balding CBE as RFL President for 2023

Sir Lindsay Hoyle to succeed Clare Balding CBE as RFL President for 2023

Wednesday July 13 – 2pm

 

Sir Lindsay Hoyle, the Speaker of the House of Commons and MP for Chorley, will become the 31st President of the Rugby Football League for 2023.

He will succeed Clare Balding CBE, who has held the honorary position since July 2020.

The decision was ratified at today’s meeting of the Rugby League Council in Huddersfield – with Sir Lindsay’s term to begin after the next Council meeting on December 22.

Sue Taylor, the Chair of the British Amateur Rugby League Association (BARLA), today begins an 18-month term as Vice President, succeeding Mike Smith – who will take a new role as Deputy Vice President for the next six months to include the Rugby League World Cup, following its postponement from 2021.

 

Ralph Rimmer, the RFL Chief Executive:

I’m personally thrilled that Sir Lindsay has accepted the invitation to serve as the RFL President for 2023, and delighted that the Rugby League Council shares that enthusiasm.

He has been a passionate advocate for Rugby League for many years, more than ever since his election as Speaker, and combines that passion with great knowledge of all aspects of the sport.

Clare Balding will be a tough act to follow, and I know she is relishing the Rugby League World Cup this autumn – so we are thrilled that in Sir Lindsay, we have such a worthy successor.

We’re really looking forward to working even more closely with him.

 

Sir Lindsay Hoyle:

I have been a Rugby League fan all my life – I think it’s an absolutely fantastic sport – so it is a real honour to be asked to be RFL President.

Since my father introduced me to the game, I have loved the fast pace, high collision nature of Rugby League, but also its vital role in bringing communities together and developing upcoming talent.

This autumn’s Rugby League World Cup – with the Men’s, Women’s and Wheelchair competitions running alongside each other - gives us an opportunity to showcase the best players and the best sport in the world to an even bigger audience. I can’t wait!

 

The Council meeting, which included the RFL Annual General Meeting, approved the re-election of Sandy Lindsay MBE for a second three-year team as a Non-Executive Director of the RFL until the 2025 AGM.

Representatives from IMG provided an update on the strategic partnership with Rugby League and their focus areas and vision for the sport.  The immediate focus areas include competition structure, brand, digital strategy, and preparation for the next broadcast cycle.

Extensive consultation has begun with key stakeholder groups notably clubs, players – including the Rugby League Players Association through the GMB - coaches, supporters, media and broadcast representatives, and international bodies. This is in addition to IMG’s own internal knowledge and expertise.

It is expected that recommendations encompassing aspects of all the above will be presented to clubs this autumn.

Planning is also continuing in relation to ‘Phase 2’ of the partnership including streaming through Endeavor’s OTT platform Endeavor Streaming and data collection, betting product development and streaming rights via IMG’s sports data and betting technology business IMG ARENA.

The IMG update followed the completion of the long-form agreements for the realignment of the governance of the sport on the morning of the meeting with the final changes to the RFL Articles agreed within the meeting. The Board of the sport’s new commercial arm is expected to be in place by the end of September 2022 and the company fully operational by 1 January 2023. 

Council were also informed that the RFL have formalised the sport’s relationship with Nujum Sports, who have been appointed Advisors to Rugby League on Muslim Inclusion.

The Council were also updated on three projects through which the RFL will provide further support to the governance and business operations of clubs, in each case supported by DCMS funding delivered by Sport England following successful bids by the RFL.

Club Board Diversity - expanding the diversity of skills and backgrounds represented on professional club Boards. As phase one, 10 clubs will be selected to receive direct support with recruitment. As a second phase, a toolkit will be provided to benefit the whole sport.

Club Digital Learning Hub – the development of an online education platform covering a range of areas of importance to clubs and the sport and designed to benefit all involved in Rugby League. 

Environmental Sustainability – a review of the RFL, all professional clubs and a sample of community game clubs, to be followed by recommendations for improvements with a focus on those that have financial benefits. The RFL have engaged BASIS (the British Association for Sustainable Sport) as environmental sustainability consultant to lead on this project. 

The accounts of the RFL for the 2021 accounting period, which had been distributed in advance of the meeting, were approved.

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