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Super League live on free-to-air television for first time ever.

Ten live matches each year including two end of year Play-Off games.

New season to kick-off on Thursday 10th February with full fixtures released on Thursday 25th November.

Super League have announced a landmark deal which will see Channel 4 broadcast Betfred Super League matches in 2022. This initial two-year partnership will see matches broadcast free-to-air for the first time in the competition’s 26-year history.

Channel 4 will broadcast 10 live games each season, starting with Leeds Rhinos hosting Warrington Wolves on Saturday 12th February (12:30pm). The remaining nine games will be spread across the season and will include two end of season Play-Off fixtures.

The 2021 Betfred Super League season saw record viewing figures with more games than ever attracting over 200,000 live viewers. By offering sports fans the opportunity to watch games via a free-to-air broadcaster, these figures will continue to show significant growth in 2022.

Ken Davy, Super League chairman, said: “We are delighted to be able to confirm a brand-new broadcast partnership with Channel 4. They have a great track record of showing some of the best sporting competitions.

“The opportunity to offer live Betfred Super League action to fans on a free-to-air platform across the whole season is fantastic and one that we hope will continue to serve our current fans, as well as attract many new fans to the sport.

“I must thank our principal broadcast partner, Sky Sports, without whose support this partnership would not have been possible.”

Peter Andrews, Channel 4 Head of Sport, said: “We’re absolutely thrilled to be bringing Super League to free to air television for the first time in its history, it’s fantastic news for Rugby League fans and it’s a really special addition to Channel 4’s sports portfolio particularly since it’s one of our first major partnerships since moving to our new National HQ building at the Majestic in Leeds.”

The 2022 Betfred Super League season kicks off on Thursday 10th February.

Full fixtures for next season are scheduled to be announced on Thursday 25th November 2021.

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Well done Ken Davy great news for our sport

Do we have any idea how much extra money this will bring into the game? I know it's only 10 games.
Either way this is fantastic news and will hopefully bring in a few more fans to the game. One can only hope the games on show are good spectacles and good to watch for the neutral

beat me to it Josie . Was just reading about it and about to post

good news and what many of us have been crying out for, for a long time. Whilst it doesnt go into the financial details within the article, any exposure on free to air TV (Saturday dinner) can only be good for the game and hopefully something to build on, and not just let it be a one off contract.

What i would like to see now on C4 is some promotion of the games, so that they arent just watched by general RL fans, but try to attract a wider audience. I am sure Adam Hills will do more than his fair share on "The Last Leg"

Great news! im guessing Sky will be taking a slice of the pie for letting it happen maybe?

What would be good is if they followed it up with some other programming around rugby league, remember bbc's "rugby league raw" something of that ilk to grow the fan base outside of the games get a few of the characters out there.

Theres some really good stories in rugby league to be told

Wigan_forever1985 wrote: ↑Wed Nov 24, 2021 8:42 am Great news! im guessing Sky will be taking a slice of the pie for letting it happen maybe?

What would be good is if they followed it up with some other programming around rugby league, remember bbc's "rugby league raw" something of that ilk to grow the fan base outside of the games get a few of the characters out there.

Theres some really good stories in rugby league to be told

Isn't the reduced sky money part of this? I can't see C4 doing it if they had to pay sky.

Caboosegg wrote: ↑Wed Nov 24, 2021 8:50 am

Wigan_forever1985 wrote: ↑Wed Nov 24, 2021 8:42 am Great news! im guessing Sky will be taking a slice of the pie for letting it happen maybe?

What would be good is if they followed it up with some other programming around rugby league, remember bbc's "rugby league raw" something of that ilk to grow the fan base outside of the games get a few of the characters out there.

Theres some really good stories in rugby league to be told

Isn't the reduced sky money part of this? I can't see C4 doing it if they had to pay sky.

Not sure, im guessing that C4 have paid x amount for the rights - they may have said to the RFL for us letting you use another broadcaster we want 10% of that x - just guessing its not like Sky to be generous

What this could Well do is force sky's hand a little to pay us (as a sport) a little more in future if channel 4 get decent viewing figures and other parties start sniffing round.

Maybe I'm getting ahead of myself and this could turn out to be a complete dud, but this could also be the start of a bit of a revival if played correctly. I really hope the games on show are good quality and we don't get any dead rubbers heading towards the end of the season with empty stadiums and players not wanting to put it all on the line. The first game has the potential to be a decent game. I'm very much hoping channel 4 put on a decent show and advertise it well as well.

Exciting times ahead

Caboosegg wrote: ↑Wed Nov 24, 2021 8:50 am

Wigan_forever1985 wrote: ↑Wed Nov 24, 2021 8:42 am Great news! im guessing Sky will be taking a slice of the pie for letting it happen maybe?

What would be good is if they followed it up with some other programming around rugby league, remember bbc's "rugby league raw" something of that ilk to grow the fan base outside of the games get a few of the characters out there.

Theres some really good stories in rugby league to be told

Isn't the reduced sky money part of this? I can't see C4 doing it if they had to pay sky.

Sky showing less game,so less money but they had games to sell,or give away (who knows) to other broadcasters I'd hazard a guess there's not much money involved but they can sell advertising on the back of national TV coverage to make up for that

Knowing channel 4 there will be adverts after every tackle