Leeds-based Championship club Hunslet RLFC have pledged their continued opposition to rugby league’s grading system, questioning whether it offers ‘value for money’.

Hunslet were ranked 22nd of the 26 clubs who took part in the 2026 gradings and their score dropped for the second successive year, from 6.87 out of 20 to 6.64. In a statement on the club’s website, chief executive Neil Hampshire revealed points were lost due to changes in the finance and community pillars, after they were marked down on viewership and social media targets last year as part of the fandom criteria.

“These changes seem to benefit Super League clubs while impacting those outside of that bubble,” he claimed. Participation in the grading system is no longer mandatory and explaining why Hunslet took part, Hampshire added: “The answer is simple, as a member of the RFL council part of our role is to hold the RFL board to account and we couldn’t do that if we weren’t actively participating in the process.

“Our opposition to the process is well documented and I don’t intend to revisit that here. Indeed, I’m sure the RFL will point to improvements made by clubs to their grounds since the introduction of the system as a pointer to its success, but my questions now would be whether those improvements required to meet IMG criteria are the right ones for the clubs and whether the system offers ‘value for money’?

There's more to Hunslet RLFC than their club grading, chief executive Neil Hampshire says. Picture by Bruce Rollinson/SWpix.com.

placeholder image — There's more to Hunslet RLFC than their club grading, chief executive Neil Hampshire says. Picture by Bruce Rollinson/SWpix.com.

“To offer an example, at Hunslet we had a choice this year. Invest in a big screen and pitchside electronic advertising or invest in refurbishing our bars. The only reason this was in any way a consideration was down to IMG grading criteria, but in the end the decision was easy.

“Why would we spend money on a big screen and pitchside electronic advertising? These would be of use for, say, a maximum of 16 home games a year for 80 minutes at a time, while most people present would be watching the game unfold on the pitch as opposed to the screen or advertising.

“The bars, however, are used beyond match day, offering [an] opportunity for us to drive up income by having new, comfortable and modern spaces for use across the community. Any business would have taken that decision, but we’re not rewarded for making the right call on business investment.”

Hunslet RLFC chief executive Neil Hampshire. Picture by Hunslet RLFC.

The Parksiders chief called on the RFL to be “open and transparent about the cost of implementing the system” and also suggested: “A fairer way to understand ‘value for money’ would surely be to divide the amount of central funding a club has by how many IMG points they scored.

“That would help us to understand the price of a point at each club. I’m confident it would also expose that more investment is needed in the Championship to allow those clubs any chance of meeting some of the IMG criteria. No doubt the IMG Grading process will fall by the wayside eventually, but until then we remain at the table ready to question and challenge.”

And of the club’s C grade, he insisted: “We’ll have to take that on the chin, but anyone who has experienced a match day with us at South Leeds Stadium knows we are way beyond that.”