Dont get me wrong , if what you and I have suggested , you would hear massive amounts of moaning from the non SL clubs and their fans , and in a way they would be right as some of those clubs are probably as strong as the Expansion clubs , although the idea is that eventually even they might see some benifit , but only in the very long term

But you would also hear it from SL clubs fans as well , even though it is their clubs that would be benifitting in the short to medium term

The problem would arrise when you had some success on the pitch , which as I said earlier , many sports administrators are very short sighted when it comes to separating the ' Sport ' from the ' Business ' if their club is on the wrong end of the sports competition

I thought this had been happening since 1996 anyway?

Hi Chaps, Flat Capper here.
RL needs a successful London Franchise. The current one is in the wrong place and plays in the wrong colours. Let Sky/SLE own the franchise, take £100k a year from all other clubs share and make it a success by moving it to an area that plays RL at junior level - even linked to a soccer club as a viable summer option in the locality.

When teams are struggling in the MLB, the MLB takes control of said teams. Last year they took control of the Texas Rangers who then went on to the World Series the same year, and got purchased by some very, very rich people. This year they have already taken charge of the LA Dodgers.

This shows that it works in another sport, and the RFL taking charge of the every day running of Quins, whilst looking at a hugely rich new backer will help the club move forwards, the way forward would be while the RFL have control market the club all over, get cheap tickets on the go and give them a name that as soon as you hear you don't think Union.

The only problem with this, of course, is that it will give the conspiracy theorists a field day.

Totally agree!!

The problem is that governing bodies in the USA have the merchandising rights for all the teams and leagues and keep a significant portion for themselves before sharing (unequally) the remainder among the teams. The governing bodies are therefore quite large wealthy businesses in their own right and can afford to step in and help failing clubs.

The RFL on the other hand are not a wealthy organisation and would need to pour a lot of money and resources into Quins while waiting for this [ihugely rich new backer[/i to come along.

Its a good idea in a perfect world but alas they just don't have the means to do it without all other clubs agreeing to a cut in their income to subsidise it - that just isn't going to happen when you look at the finances of some of our other SL clubs.

The Quins need a sugar daddy so they can put an awesome team out every week and pay people to come to the games so they can play infront of a full-house.

Well, they tried free tickets, maybe this is the way to go

.

How much would it take for non-converts to endure a couple of hours of RL, I reckon at least a tenner a head, but then again, I would have to be paid more than that, to go watch a Union match.

Call it Team Sky, dress it in blue and buy up the best players. Have Sky ever done anything similar?

oTo' Not a very good bike I will admit

Yes, get Rupert Murdoch to buy the team, have Sky plastered all over their shirts get him to build a new stadium or buy a current one (Loftus Rd going up for sale) he could throw silly money at the marketing and fill the stadium easy, also spending at cap limit, and invest heavily in Youth development.

The London Sky Blue's

Job done

or

just not bother and buy a new yacht

Quote ="Gronk!"When teams are struggling in the MLB, the MLB takes control of said teams. Last year they took control of the Texas Rangers who then went on to the World Series the same year, and got purchased by some very, very rich people. This year they have already taken charge of the LA Dodgers. This shows that it works in another sport, and the RFL taking charge of the every day running of Quins, whilst looking at a hugely rich new backer will help the club move forwards, the way forward would be while the RFL have control market the club all over, get cheap tickets on the go and give them a name that as soon as you hear you don't think Union. The only problem with this, of course, is that it will give the conspiracy theorists a field day.'" house.resource.org/110/org.c-spa ... -1.raw.txt The Texas Rangers also got a $250 million stadium for free from the US government and when the club was sold George Bush came away with $14.9m tax free, a big return on his $600,000 stake. The RFL is nowhere near as dirty and there is no government program of building stadiums as there is in other countries, there is little hope of Quins moving forward with help from a higher power. Inflation might mean a rougher time for most of us, but on the flip-side we as a country are creating more millionaires then ever before. With football being the billionaires pursuit, maybe we can get a millionaire along to a big match in the Super League and persuade them to share the burden in running what is potentially one of Super League top clubs.

Quote ="Gronk!"When teams are struggling in the MLB, the MLB takes control of said teams. Last year they took control of the Texas Rangers who then went on to the World Series the same year, and got purchased by some very, very rich people. This year they have already taken charge of the LA Dodgers. This shows that it works in another sport, and the RFL taking charge of the every day running of Quins, whilst looking at a hugely rich new backer will help the club move forwards, the way forward would be while the RFL have control market the club all over, get cheap tickets on the go and give them a name that as soon as you hear you don't think Union. The only problem with this, of course, is that it will give the conspiracy theorists a field day.'" house.resource.org/110/org.c-spa ... -1.raw.txt The Texas Rangers also got a $250 million stadium for free from the US government and when the club was sold George Bush came away with $14.9m tax free, a big return on his $600,000 stake. The RFL is nowhere near as dirty and there is no government program of building stadiums as there is in other countries, there is little hope of Quins moving forward with help from a higher power. Inflation might mean a rougher time for most of us, but on the flip-side we as a country are creating more millionaires then ever before. With football being the billionaires pursuit, maybe we can get a millionaire along to a big match in the Super League and persuade them to share the burden in running what is potentially one of Super League top clubs.

Or alternatively

1. Accept RL in London will never catch on enough to be worthwhile.

2. Stop trying to make it work and give up.

Gets my vote.





In addition, I'd take the £10million they receive each year from the RFL and split it equally between the M62 SL clubs.

It's gone up to £12 million a year, inflation.

I think a lot of the Quins problems stem from being linked to RU. If we are trying to expand RL then it seems nonsense to play from the home of union, its a similar situation with Leeds Carnegie playing at the home of one of the biggest names in rugby league, their crowds are crap and always will be. I don't really remember where London went wrong although I am sure someone will remind be. I seem to remember going to Fulham and there being 10000 plus there and having a great time. I think the main thing now is to get their own identity and stick with it.

Really important point. The marketing's all wrong. You can't market a rugby league club under a union moniker in the shadow of Twickenham. Quins RU fans won't want to follow a league team as well, and your Saracens and Wasps fans and so on won't want to watch a team under the guise of Harlequins. The Quins brand cannot and will not sell rugby league on any major scale when it has such an identity crisis.

It may seem counter-intuitive to target an area with more of a football presence, but it's ironically an easier sell. The club does, however, need to be strong on the pitch to be able to get crowds which can be a bit of a chicken and egg scenario without the fans and revenue...

The London question is a difficult one given its nomadic history, but the union link is definitely more suffocating, IMO, than any previous London identity.

But Cycling is a huge global commercial sport and every year has the worlds biggest annual sporting event (when it is not an Summer Olympic or World Cup year) which last three weeks and reaches massive global TV audiences.. other than that it is a great idea!

Top post!

Going back to Liversedge's point though I don't think Carnegie playing at Headingley is the same. They do (well did) ok for crowds, well better than the Quins RL do anyway and they have a separate identity, don't play in the same jerseys and were of course born out of the established and largest Union club in Leeds. They are never going to do as well in Leeds as the football or RL teams and will always sit in third place, if they moved elsewhere in the city it would just make the costs higher!

Quote ="Liversedge Wildcat"I think a lot of the Quins problems stem from being linked to RU. If we are trying to expand RL then it seems nonsense to play from the home of union, its a similar situation with Leeds Carnegie playing at the home of one of the biggest names in rugby league, their crowds are crap and always will be. I don't really remember where London went wrong although I am sure someone will remind be. I seem to remember going to Fulham and there being 10000 plus there and having a great time. I think the main thing now is to get their own identity and stick with it.'" Leeds seem to manage to represent Yorkshire, and Harlequins seem to draw support from a wide area, just not enough of it from every part of London and the south east. Leeds have played for a crowd of less than 1500 against Gloucester and got over 12000 against the same team with an adult and child for a fiver deal. Harlequins RL are to play at the Stoop for the next three years so the ground is not going to change. news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/rugby_l ... 398625.stm

Quote ="Liversedge Wildcat"I think a lot of the Quins problems stem from being linked to RU. If we are trying to expand RL then it seems nonsense to play from the home of union, its a similar situation with Leeds Carnegie playing at the home of one of the biggest names in rugby league, their crowds are crap and always will be. I don't really remember where London went wrong although I am sure someone will remind be. I seem to remember going to Fulham and there being 10000 plus there and having a great time. I think the main thing now is to get their own identity and stick with it.'" Leeds seem to manage to represent Yorkshire, and Harlequins seem to draw support from a wide area, just not enough of it from every part of London and the south east. Leeds have played for a crowd of less than 1500 against Gloucester and got over 12000 against the same team with an adult and child for a fiver deal. Harlequins RL are to play at the Stoop for the next three years so the ground is not going to change. news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/rugby_l ... 398625.stm

What makes people think the RFL can run a club? What happens when a player is up on report - will Nige have to appeal to himself to let his own player off? Will he have to submit a license application to himself? If they don't get Club of the year every year does that mean the RFL haven't lived up to their own standards? When they win the Challenge Cup will Dickie Lewis shake hands with himself at the pre-match presentation?

Instead of the RFL doing it - just hand the money to Gutterfax. He has all the answers. Would he come back though? Would he answer the call . . . . . ?

If you have a problem, if no one else can help, and if you can find them, maybe you can hire the A-Te...er Gutterfax.

It looks like someone has a massive chip on their shoulder.

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