In today's Guardian....
[urlhttps://www.theguardian.com/sport/2017/mar/06/super-league-clubs-could-relocate-south-or-abroad[/url

Not before time the RFL switched on to something like this. Lets hope a few move

Jeez, I bet Michael Carter's been on the blower already.

Tomar Trinity's got a nice ring about it.

It's not going to happen. Lets take Wakefield as an example. If Mr Carter was to up sticks and take them to Coventry or Dublin, another RL club would form in Wakefield and call themselves Wakefield Trinity or similar. A bit like when Sheffield moved to Huddersfield or Gateshead to Hull.

Funded by who? Playing where? With what players?

1. Supporters, new owner etc..

2. In Wakefield

3. With whatever players they can get.

They would essentially just re start in a lower division and they would still have a hardcore of 1.5-2k supporters.

Come on Smokey, stop trying to argue for arguing sake.

Some questions/comments...

High Wycombe to Coventry is about an hour. Wakey (for instance) to Coventry or Newcastle is 2+ hrs. That makes a lot of difference to existing fans for both clubs.

So what happened to existing Wasps fans?
1. Still have season passes
2. Go to irregular home games
3. Don't attend matches
4. Given up on the team completely

Yes you may get some new fans going, but if the fan base is going to end up equal or less than it's current fanbase, what's the point? RL is hardly very good at selling itself is it? (I'm looking at you Red Hall and Eddie Stobart).

Wakefield fans wouldn't even go if they played in Castleford so any discussion of whether or not fans would travel to a new city is pointless.

1. Where are these people now. Wakefield are hardly a club flushed with cash now.

2. Where in Wakefield? They are currently tenants to a landlord who doesn't really want them in a stadium that isn't fit for purpose and a new club won't even have that. There isn't a suitable stadium in Wakefield at all and the unsuitable ones already have rl teams in them

3.where from?

You make it sound very easy when there would be massive hurdles to overcome with likely not very much notice and starting from scratch. They would probably have only 3 or 4 months to organise, get investment, find a stadium, then find sponsors, players, start marketing, start selling tickets get a passable business plan and accepted in to the RFL, all for a club that isn't called Wakefield Trinity. If they don't do it in those 3 or 4 months then they miss at least 1 year, fans will drift away and to other clubs and it's pretty much over.

But its not impossible and can be done. While not at the same level, Sheffield and Gateshead did it. With enough will it can be done. People will always find a way. Mark Aston is testament to that.

Can't wait ......

Leigh-On-Sea 'till I die !!!

Yes, but, if we are talking SL "franchises" being give out to the "most worthy clubs" then all of the power would be with the governing body and those clubs who dance to their tune.
What is interesting is that, IIRC, Trinity were "blocked" from moving outside the City by the RFL and there is the biggest problem.
You couldn't trust the RFL to do this properly and they would make a complete mess of things, further damaging the game.
The sport certainly does need to think about where it is going and if a magic wand could be waved, it would be a "better product" if we had a true national league.
THe parochial nature of the sport is both its strength and its major weakness.
However, ultimately, for pro sport to succeed and become more attractive to the TV companies, which are clearly, the largest source of revenue to all major sport's, RL has to become more diverse.

Wasps are a bit of a special case, though; they are top of the league and beating all comers, so they are bound to attract (new) fans.

That wouldn't apply to any SL side in the same situation.

That's not a reason for it not to happen, but a statement of things that might occur if it does happen.

It could make financial sense for a club to relocate from an area with a dense concentration of RL teams, all competing for a limited support, to an area where there is potential for +10K crowds, whilst retaining its league status.

Like you said this does not rule out a phoenix club rising in that original area, starting from the bottom up.

So to be clear the RFL are open to moving a club anywhere they feel is OK.
Is this the same RFL that stops clubs trying to make a few quid by giving players an unusual shirt number.
I always thought they'd learnt a lesson with franchising. Guess we learn something every day

Just to be clear, I am all for expansion. However, moving clubs will not work because of the reasons I stated. The club moved to Coventry would be in effect the same as just starting a new club in Coventry and relegating the old club to the lower echelons of the league structure.

Salford has few supporters in Salford, so moving the club to Newcastle, and renaming it Newcastle Red Devils would be good for the team.

Wakefield is in a similar situation and would be better off in Coventry where it would have a new fan support base. Coventry-Wakefield Trinity has a nice ring about it.

Only in rugby league could the governing body be obsessed with such a ludicrous idea.

Coventrinity?

Birmingham Devils might be doable although Manchester Devils is more likely and just stay where they are but claim the moving cash.

Move the Bulls to Scotland and rename them Aberdeen Angus?

It simply isn't going to happen, but the names are fun to play with.

It's a crap nicked idea from American sports.

The St Louis Rams and San Diego Chargers both relocated to Los Angeles and the Oakland Raiders want to move to Las Vegas...all that has happened in the last ~18 months. It's happened a number times in America in the past beyond that.

Oakland Raiders were LA Raiders, so they're really being pimped around the place!

Funny you should mention LA.....

Los Angeles, up until last year, was probably the most important city in the NFL. Every team that was in a deadlock with their local government over a new stadium, or stadium upgrade, could simply threaten to move to LA, and use it as a bargaining chip. We've since seen Oakland Raiders do it with Las Vegas, and I'm sure we'll get one soon enough threatening to move to London, Toronto or Mexico City.

I don't think that we'll see a Super League team suddenly become "Coventry Trinity", but I could certainly see a team making such suggestions in order to sharpen the mind an unhelpful councillor or two who really should have done a lot more to enforce a section 106 planning condition. Of course, that threat is pretty empty if the RFL were unlikely to ever approve such a move, but now it would seem that Red Hall would happily wave it through if it ever came to that.

The only question then is how much do those clubs bring to their local economy? If a club doesn't bring any sort of notable value to its town or city, then such a threat probably doesn't carry much weight. If they do, then it does potentially become an economic and political argument. There is currently a lot of pressure on Leeds City Council regarding the situation at Headingley, given the value that interational cricket has on the local economy.

It's a good point that you make about bringing in visitors etc.
Catalan did not have their local authority on board in the early days but, once they saw the opportunity of some decent tourist revenue, they quickly jumped on board.
500/1000 people coming across 11+ times a year will give their economy a boost.
That equates to 30,000 ish hotel beds + spend in the local bars and shops.
Of course, that wouldn't be the case in Barnsley or Sheffield but, if the local councils work with the clubs, there is a chance to boost the local economy with various add on's.

There's a political argument as well. Would any sitting councillor or MP want to stand for re-election having just seen the local rugby team (in some cases in RL land, the only thing that puts that town on the map) up sticks and move on?

I absolutely get that life isn't easy for local authorities at the moment and there's an ethical argument about sports clubs (which are ultimately private enterprises) making demands in the context of everything else councils are dealing with, but a rugby club with 7,000 supporters is a rugby club with 7,000 potential voters - all of whom have something in common.

It just doesn't make sense as an option in the context of our system or any system with P+R

What's the value in buying Wakefield and moving them lock stock and barrell to wherever if by the time you move them or shortly after Wakefield have been relegated?

And if you can buy your way in to super league why not just do that? Why as a sport would we be better off selling Wakefield or Salford or anyone else and moving them to some where else. Why not just sell a new SL spot