Wakefield Trinity top club gradings as all 14 Super League teams retain 2027 places

Wakefield Trinity topped the Rugby Football League’s 2026 club gradings, announced on 8 October, as the governing body confirmed that all 14 current Super League clubs will retain their places in the competition in 2027. The result leaves Championship winners London Broncos outside the confirmed lineup despite winning three titles this season.

Wakefield scored 17.85 out of 20, the highest mark this year and equal to Hull KR’s record score in 2025. The club climbed from eighth in last year’s rankings after winning the Super League Grand Final. The RFL says each of the 14 clubs that occupied the top 14 places last year has retained its position and is automatically guaranteed a Super League place next season.

How Wakefield reached the top of the 2026 gradings

The RFL said Wakefield made the largest year-on-year gain of any club, adding 2.38 points. Its Grand Final victory contributed 0.75 bonus points under the on-field performance part of the grading model. The club’s score is measured across five areas: fandom, finance, stadium, community and on-field performance. It is therefore a wider assessment than a table of this season’s match results.

Wakefield’s rise follows a rapid change in its competitive position. The club was relegated from Super League in 2023, won the Championship Grand Final in 2024 to return to the top flight, reached the Super League play-offs in 2025 and won the Grand Final this season. It had scored 15.47 and ranked eighth in the previous grading round, according to BBC Sport.

Which Super League clubs gained Grade A status?

Eight clubs reached Grade A, the category for scores of at least 15 points. Leeds Rhinos finished second with 17.03, beaten Grand Finalists Warrington Wolves third with 16.72 and Wigan Warriors fourth with 16.46. Hull KR were fifth on 16.45, followed by Leigh Leopards on 16.31, St Helens on 15.59 and Castleford Tigers on 15.03.

Castleford moved from 11th last year to eighth and regained Grade A status despite finishing 13th in Super League, according to BBC Sport. Catalans Dragons and Hull FC moved the other way, dropping from Grade A to Grade B and ranking ninth and 10th. They remain among the 14 clubs guaranteed places in the 2027 competition. Bradford Bulls, Huddersfield Giants, Toulouse Olympique and York Knights complete that group, all with Grade B scores.

Why London Broncos remain outside the confirmed lineup

London Broncos won the Championship Grand Final, the 1895 Cup and the regular-season title, BBC Sport reported. Yet they ranked 16th in the club gradings with 9.77 points, below fellow Championship club Barrow Raiders on 9.85. York Knights, the lowest-ranked club in the confirmed Super League lineup, scored 13.24. London’s score was also down from 11.65 in the previous year’s assessment, according to the BBC.

The results show why London’s success on the field did not translate into a place through this grading round: the RFL assesses clubs on finance, facilities, fandom and community work as well as performance. The RFL said 12 Championship clubs took part, some only to benchmark themselves. Participation in the 2026 process was optional, so the published rankings do not cover every Super League and Championship club.

BBC Sport reported that Australia’s National Rugby League was in advanced talks about investing in the competition. It said any completed deal was understood to involve the NRL seeking London’s inclusion in the top flight next season. That remains attributed reporting about a possible deal: the RFL’s grading announcement confirms the existing 14 clubs’ places but does not announce an investment agreement or a change to London’s status. For now, the gradings settle which current clubs keep their places while leaving any effect of those talks unresolved.