Controversial changes to Salary Cap overwhelmingly rejected by 11 votes to one

[josie andrews]

Salary cap madness

LAST week the Super League clubs discussed a paper put forward by the RFL that proposed various changes to the salary cap for 2025.

It was based on changes proposed by a small sub-group of club representatives including Kris Radlinski of Wigan, Paul Lakin of Hull KR and Karl Fitzpatrick of Warrington.

Amazingly, the proposed changes would have piled further expenditure onto clubs and it seems that the other clubs hadn’t been consulted about what was being proposed.

The result was that eleven voted against the proposal with only Wigan casting their vote in support.

It was a slap in the face for the RFL and, having obtained a copy of the RFL’s document, I read it with some astonishment.

It’s yet another illustration that the administration of our sport is running aground.

Someone has to do something about it.

And here is the paper that caused so much consternation.

Of course it will not now be implemented.


“Salary Cap changes – 2025.

Following consultation with Clubs, as part of the Salary Cap Working Group during 2024, we are pleased to confirm the below changes have now been approved by the RFL’s Executive Board. The changes will be reflected in more detail in the new RFL Operational Rules and Salary Cap Regulations for 2025.

Unless otherwise stated below, these changes will come into force from December 1st, 2024.

For the avoidance of doubt, the changes to the Club Trained Allowance will be included in the Clubs’ final allowances for the 2025 season. They will be circulated to all Clubs who are competing in the Super League in 2025 on Wednesday October 23rd.

1. Finite Cap to remain at £2.1m for 2025 and 2026

2. An increase in deemed values for cars, flights and accommodation as set out below (and subject to grandfather rights – so only being enforced on players signed after 1 January 2025)
– Car – Increase from £4,000 per Salary Cap Year to £4,500
– Flights – Increase from £2,000 per adult flight to £2,500
– Accommodation – Increase from £6,000 per Salary Cap Year to £8,000

3. An injury dispensation for players who are injured for more than six games and the injury is caused by foul play that is charged by the Match Review Panel. In such circumstances the player comes off the relevant Clubs Cap for the length of the injury. The player would return to Cap the week he is named in a 21-man squad after the injury. This is a dispensation that would see injured players out for more than 20% of a season and is one suggested on the grounds of welfare. Whilst there is a possibility of a Club trying to game this allowance, the chance of this is limited as the player would be deemed of a value to the team before the injury and so a club would want the player to play as soon as possible to ensure winning matches.

4. A new allowance to be created to encourage clubs to release players for England (and in the case of French clubs, France) that would provide an allowance to increase Salary Cap for the club by £10k per player who is named in the 18-man team for an International Match. This dispensation will be implemented in the following season. This allowance should be capped at four players (£40k).

5. An increase in the Club Trained Allowance for Clubs to increase their club Cap by a maximum of £150,000 up from £100,000. This will be determined by Clubs being given an allowance of £7,500 for any Club Trained player in Super League who has played 10 first grade games and £2,500 for a player who has played at least 10 games for any Championship Club in the relevant season. This will be capped at a maximum of 20 players across both competitions.

6. An increase in the wage limit for Players eligible to play in under-23 level competitions (Previously U21) to not count toward a Club’s Salary Cap to £35k per annum from £30k.

In addition, to allow clubs to sign a maximum of two players over that age on £35K or less and not count on Cap. From current data, it is clear that there are relatively few players on £35k or less in Super League squads. However, this will allow us to start.

7. An increase in what Clubs can pay to players from prize money without it counting on the Cap. Clubs can pay up to an amount equivalent to what will be 150% of the monies allocated as prize money from RL Commercial.

8. Allowing clubs to pay bonuses to players for Young Player of the Year, inclusion in the Dream Team and for these payments not to count on Cap.”

The last allowance appears to have no limit and it gives a ridiculous amount of power to the people who select the Young Player of the Year and the Dream Team.

https://www.totalrl.com/controversial-c ... es-to-one/

[josie andrews]

Why would three clubs, HKR, Warrington & Wigan, propose changes to the salary cap & then two out of those three vote against the changes making Wigan look like the bad guy?

[fozzie58]

Why would three clubs, HKR, Warrington & Wigan, propose changes to the salary cap & then two out of those three vote against the changes making Wigan look like the bad guy?

“Fair weather friends” come to mind,the bloody cap should be done away with instead of all this faffing about but yup Wigan made to look bad in this case

[moto748]

So Wigan suggested some pretty minor tweaks (although I think I'd agree with the criticism about bonuses for being in the Dream Team), and even these couldn't get the approval of the other clubs?

It's hard to see what totalrl's position is here: why was it "a slap in the face for the RFL"? Everyone agrees the SC is unsatisfactory. If you're going to criticise proposals, make some of your own.

[Wiganer Ted]

From the opening para it seems the RFL had been in consultation with the clubs about all of these aspects and improvements to the SC.
In the end the clubs have not gone ahead although giving the RFL the impression they would.

Trouble is most supporters know that basically the SC has failed totally.
It was meant to even out the competition which would suggest they envisaged over a period of ten years or so we could have perhaps as many as five or six different Champions.
With only four winners in 26 years of the Grand Final not only has the salary cap failed but spectacularly so.

How anyone is going to improve the sport at its elite level with the salary cap in force is the unknown. At present no one is suggesting a method of making the competition more competitive and successful.

[Mike]

To even out the comp all clubs need to be able to spend up to the cap. And right now it seems like they really can't. So if you wanted to even things out you'd have to set is so low that you couldn't have full time pro squads.

We have to grow the pot of money first, then start raising the cap.

I think the slap in the face comment is an implication that the RFL can't organise a rubber stamping of new rules. They should have know it was going to fail and never put the proposal forward in the first place if it was.

[doc]

1) Would like to see the cap raised but if you are going to freeze it then you need to boost payments to the players by the exemptions.

2) Not bothered one way or the other

3) Sensible approach in that it stops a club being penalised due to foul play by the opposition an is good for player welfare as there is less impetus to get the player back on the park.

4) Better for the international team and could stop Saints pulling out their players due to "injury".

5) Promotes the development of home grown talent rather than importing bog standard players from down under.

6) Helps stop poaching of young players by NRL/RU.

7) A bit of a bonus for those players in the best teams who have excelled over the season.

8) See above.

All seem very logical. The clubs have to be more inventive in improving their income streams but it would appear most just cannot be arsed and would prefer to keep the status quo due to lack of ambition. I have no idea how much we grossed from the concerts and other events or how much the Vegas trip will make, but at least we are making an effort.

As for spending up to the cap, all clubs should be striving to improve their income/academies so that they can pay up to the full cap.

[Wigan_forever1985]

To even out the comp all clubs need to be able to spend up to the cap. And right now it seems like they really can't. So if you wanted to even things out you'd have to set is so low that you couldn't have full time pro squads.

We have to grow the pot of money first, then start raising the cap.

I think the slap in the face comment is an implication that the RFL can't organise a rubber stamping of new rules. They should have know it was going to fail and never put the proposal forward in the first place if it was.

I dont personally agree with the bit in bold i think if we want superleague to grow we need to let the chains that restrict growth and disruption i.e the salary cap

I don't see what the disadvantage is of getting rid of the cap altogether if im honest the two biggest arguments are

1) It levels the field - well the superleague has only ever been won by 4 clubs in total and 3 clubs over the last decade i don't see it as being any closer now than it was before
2) It stops clubs going bust - yet several have since the cap

The big losers in this are the players

[fozzie58]

At the end of the day the argument to keep the cap is a poor one to me if clubs can demonstrate that they can afford their expenditures then let them.

The cap hasn’t stopped clubs going to the wall,many bad owners have though all it’s done is drive the talent pool down under because I’m sure money plays a part about that decision from a player