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2025 Super League season
30th season of Super League rugby From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Super League XXX, known as the 2025 Betfred Super League for sponsorship reasons, is the 30th season of the Super League and 131st season of rugby league in Great Britain.
Wigan Warriors are the defending champions, having beaten Hull KR in the Grand Final, to win their seventh Super League title.[1]
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Rule changes
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Captain's Challenge
In December 2024, the Rugby Football League (RFL) announced the introduction of the Captain's Challenge, first introduced to the National Rugby League in Australia in 2020 and also used during the 2021 Rugby League World Cup, for all Super League and Challenge Cup matches from 2025 onwards. Teams are permitted a ten-second window to contest a referee's decisions at a stoppage in play and refer to the video referee for a second opinion, with each team permitted to have one unsuccessful challenge per match.[2] Captain's Challenges are not permitted for forward passes, roll balls, certain penalties, time-wasting, dissent and scrum penalties.[3]
Disciplinary system
In January 2025, the RFL announced a change to the Super League's disciplinary system for the 2025 season onwards. Incidents charged from Grades A through to C by the RFL's Match Review Panel, will now be graded in a points system; the lowest, Grade A, will result in one penalty point being charged against a player, followed by Grade B (3 points), and Grades C (5 points). Should a player be charged with a Grade D, then they will receive 12 points, and a 2 match suspension. Grade E, will see players automatically referred to an RFL tribunal, which is a minimum 6 match suspension. When issued, these penalty points will stay on a player's record for one year.[4]
The amount of penalty points accumulated by a player will determine how long a match ban they may receive: for example, a player with 6 to 11 penalty points will receive a one-match ban, while a player with 54 or more points will receive a 12-match ban.[4]
Drop-outs
Two variants of drop-outs were introduced for 2025:
- If a team kicks a drop-out on the full over the touchline or kicks a drop-out so that it fails to travel at least 10 metres forward into the field of play, a play-the-ball 10 metres out will follow from the centre of the goal line rather than a penalty kick from the centre of the 10-metre line.
- If a team takes a 20-metre drop-out and it travels on the full over the touchline or kicks a 20 metre drop-out so that it fails to travel at least 10 metres forward in the field of play, a play-the-ball from the centre of the 20-metre line will follow, rather than a penalty kick from the centre of the 20-metre line.[3]
Tackle height
Changes to tackle height rules were first announced by the RFL for all leagues in December 2023, with tackling above the armpit outlawed in order to reduce rates of head concussion injuries during matches.[5] Though the rule was introduced to grassroots, academy and reserve rugby leagues in 2024, elite rugby leagues were to see this rule implemented in their 2025 seasons,[6] however in December 2024, the RFL announced that tackle height laws would remain the same after concussion injuries were found to have been reduced with the introduction of instrumented mouthguards.[3]
Other rules
Green cards, first introduced in 2022 to permit defending players to leave the pitch for a maximum two minutes,[7] were permitted to also be used by the referee to allow attacking players to leave the pitch.[3]
Referees are also permitted to differentiate between active and passive offside players at a kick chase.[3]
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Structure changes
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Grading
Gradings were introduced to the Super League by IMG and the RFL from 2024 onwards, removing automatic relegation as a result of finishing 12th from 2024 onwards. After a proposal to reintroduce automatic promotion from lower leagues irrespective of grading was rejected, changes for the 2025 season largely centred on factors as to how teams are graded at the end of the season.[8]
Clubs can now earn grading points based on how often their matches are aired or streamed on any platform, with the six clubs scoring the highest match viewership from these platforms securing 1.0 points; clubs who qualify with a minimum six-camera match production score 0.75 points, while clubs who do not have matches broadcast on any platform scored 0.5 points. Additional points can be secured by expanding their social media footprint, as well as through expanding their supporter catchment by signing a Rugby League Development Agreement with a bordering local authority. Clubs whose stadiums are undergoing major renovation work have been allowed to retain their previous stadium facilities score for a maximum of two years, while clubs who do not publish their data capture scores will be penalised 0.25 points.[8]
International break
After 2024's mid-season away match against the France national rugby league team held on 29 June was criticised for poor attendance, a lack of advertising and placement in the middle of a triple-header of matches,[9] the England national rugby league team announced that they did not plan to play matches in June and July 2025, therefore removing the Super League's international break for the 2025 season.[10] When the Super League's 2025 fixtures were announced, Round 20 was split across two weeks between 24 July and 1 August to compensate for the international break. Six teams - Catalans, Hull FC, Huddersfield, Leeds Wakefield, Wigan - played Super League matches in the first week, while the remaining six - Castleford, Hull KR, Leigh, Salford, St Helens and Warrington - played in the second week, allowing each team to rest their players for one week regardless of whether they progressed into the Challenge Cup final.[11]
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Broadcasting
BBC Sport are broadcasting matches as well as match highlights in the second year of their three-year deal with the Super League, replacing Channel 4 as the league's free-to-air partner from 2024 season.[12] Ten games per season will be shown live on television, with a further five shown on iPlayer, the BBC's streaming platform.
Teams
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The league comprises 12 teams. The regular season comprises 27 rounds.
Wigan Warriors are the defending champions after winning the 2024 Grand Final.[1] London Broncos, who finished bottom of the Super League table in 2024, were relegated to the Championship under IMG's grading system. They were replaced by Wakefield Trinity, who were promoted from the Championship under the grading system after finishing top of the Championship table.[13]
Locations of the 2025 Super League teams in Northern England
Locations of 2025 Super League teams in France
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Fixtures and results
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Matches decided by golden point
If a match ends in a draw after 80 minutes, then a further 10 minutes of golden point extra time is played, to determine a winner (five minutes each way). The first team to score either a try, penalty goal or drop goal during this period, will win the match. However, if there are no further scores during the additional 10 minutes period, then the match will end in a draw.[26]
Game 1: Wigan Warriors v Leigh Leopards
The Round 1 fixture between Wigan Warriors and Leigh Leopards at the Brick Community Stadium on 13 February ended in a 0–0 draw, the first time a match has ended with no scoring in Super League history. Wigan's Jai Field did score a try in the second half, however it was disallowed for a ball steal in the build-up. The game then went to golden point, and Gareth O'Brien kicked the winning drop goal for Leigh, defeating Wigan away for the first time since 1983.[27]
Game 2: Hull KR v Castleford Tigers
The Round 1 fixture between Hull Kingston Rovers and Castleford Tigers, at Sewell Group Craven Park on 14 February finished 18–18 after 80 minutes, however, Tex Hoy missed a last minute penalty to potentially win the game for Castleford, and the game went to extra time. Mikey Lewis kicked the winning drop goal to win the game for Hull KR 19-18.[28]
Game 3: Hull FC v Leigh Leopards
The Round 4 fixture between Hull FC and Leigh Leopards on 6 March 2025, finished 22–22 after 80 minutes. The game then went to extra time. The first drop goal attempt came from Lachlan Lam at the end of the first period, but his effort was short, and with no further scores, the score remained the same. The second period of extra time saw Jordan Rapana's drop goal attempt charged down, and at the end of the second period, Lam attempted another drop goal, but his effort was charged down also, and with no further points scored, the match ended in a draw.[29]
Game 4: Catalans Dragons v Wakefield Trinity
The Round 9 fixture between Catalans Dragons and Wakefield Trinity on 26 April 2025, finished 20–20 after 80 minutes. The game then went to extra time, which saw Mason Lino sent to the sin bin for a high tackle, and from the resulting penalty, Reimis Smith scored the winning try, to win the game for Catalans 24–20[30]
Cancellations
During the season Salford have been beset by financial difficulties which has resulted in numerous players leaving the club. In the round 21 fixture against Hull, Salford only managed to raise a 17-player squad through the use of loan players from other Super League teams and were thrashed 80–6 by Hull.[31] The following week Salford were due to play Wakefield but with the other clubs now reluctant to loan players, Salford could only name a squad including only two players with Super League experience.[32] Citing player welfare as the issue, Salford therefore withdrew from the round 22 fixture against Wakefield.[33] The RFL will decide the outcome of the fixture but under the operational rules it is likely that the match will be awarded to Wakefield as 48–0 victory but could also place the club in jeopardy of being ejected from Super League.[34]
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Table
Updated to match(es) played on 17 August 2025. Source:
(T) Qualified, but not yet for the particular phase indicated; (U) Unable to qualify for the playoffs
(T) Qualified, but not yet for the particular phase indicated; (U) Unable to qualify for the playoffs
- Salford forfeited their game against Wakefield. Under RFL operational rules, the game is recorded as a 48–0 victory for Wakefield, and converse loss for Salford, with the points scored/conceded applying to both teams.[35]
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Player statistics
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Top goal scorers
Top points scorers
- As of 18 May 2025 (Round 11)
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Discipline
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Attendances
References
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