York Knights and Toulouse Olympique have been promoted to Super League – with London Broncos the team sensationally snubbed by an independent panel.
Super League will become a 14-team competition for the first time in over a decade next year, after a panel led by Lord Jonathan Caine decided that there were two teams of sufficient quality to bolster the ranks.
Those two teams are the two that have led the way on the pitch in the Championship throughout 2025. York won 20 games in a row at one stage in 2025, lifted the 1895 Cup and were the league leaders in the second tier following a remarkable season under Mark Applegarth.
However, they fell short in the Championship Grand Final to Toulouse, who were crowned winners of the competition and who make their return to the top flight after just a solitary season in the division in 2022.
But York will be a Super League club for the first time in the modern era, having last been part of the elite competition in 1986. They have made immense strides in recent years and have insisted for months they are ready for a crack at Super League. They will now get that chance in 2026.
That means London Broncos are the team who miss the cut from the three who realistically had a chance. Jason Demetriou’s side have already signed Reagan Campbell-Gillard and Siliva Havili and have a host of new signings ready to unveil.
But they will now all be playing in the second tier in 2026 after the Broncos were told they were the club who missed out on selection. London finished 10th in the league and 16th in the club gradings that were released on Thursday morning.
But they will now have to regroup and go again in the second tier and push for promotion in 2027 with Darren Lockyer at the helm as owner.
Lord Caine, the RFL non-executive board member who chaired the panel, said: “After a thorough and robust process, we were pleased to be able to decide that Toulouse Olympique and York Knights will be worthy and deserving additions to the Betfred Super League next season.
“They were 13th and 14th on the club gradings, with a significant lead on any of the other applicants from the Betfred Championship. As was set out on August 19, it was always the panel’s intention to use those gradings as one of the criteria in our deliberations, along with enhanced financial scrutiny and an assessment of competitiveness.
“The panel’s deliberations were conducted on the basis of fairness, impartiality, independence and confidentiality. The panel was unanimous in its final decision to choose Toulouse Olympique and York Knights.
“We thank and congratulate all the clubs who engaged in the process for the quality of their applications – and we look forward to seeing elite rugby league played in the historic cities of Toulouse and York in 2026.”
More to follow..
