Ken Davy: Super League aims for RFL 'realignment', says interim executive chairman
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Super League can "maximise opportunities" by realigning with the RFL governing body, according to interim executive chairman Ken Davy
Ken Davy says his mandate as interim executive chairman of Super League is to work on "realigning" the competition with the Rugby Football League governing body.
Super League parted ways with the RFL in 2018, with the intention of giving the member clubs more say in broadcast revenues, sponsorship and other deals.
However, the general appetite from clubs is for more synergy with the RFL.
"We don't want to go back to how we were," said Davy.
"But we do need to work together and I'm sure there's a lot we can do together that we couldn't do separately and more successfully as well."
Davy, who has stepped down from his role as Huddersfield Giants chairman while in the role to avoid conflict of interest, replaced Robert Elstone after he resigned in February.
The benefits of being closer allies with the RFL will bring all the professional competitions together again from top to bottom, albeit with Super League clubs holding more of a stake in the decision making.
"If we realign all our commercial assets - Super League, the Challenge Cup, the women's and Physical Disability RL and Learning Disability RL - all can be amalgamated in a way that makes them far more valuable collectively than they are separately," Davy told the 5 Live Rugby League podcast.
"That doesn't mean they will necessarily be marketed entirely separately but it does mean we can maximise opportunities."
One other outstanding issue for the league is the broadcast deal with Sky, which Davy says is currently in the final stages of negotiations.
The existing contract, which expires at the end of 2021, was worth £40m a year to the league as a whole but there is acceptance and realisation that the sport will not be able to generate that kind of money in the new agreement.
"It's common knowledge all sports have had a difficult time, with the way in which schedules have had to go with Covid-19 and the pandemic," Davy added.
"I don't think anyone is expecting to be shooting the lights out."