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Branding needs a change [Liverpool Echo (England)](Liverpool Echo (England) Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) The launch of the Women's Super League this week, is another powerful reason why rugby league needs to start using its own name to brand the sport more decisively. The name 'rugby league' is used remarkably infrequently in almost any reference to the game itself. The Sky TV coverage is of something called 'Super League', the Sky TV magazine programme is called 'Boots n' All' - for reasons beyond me - and the big end of season game is the Super League Grand Final. It is hard to find any reference to the sport of rugby league in any popular representations of the game, and this needs to change. It is true that the BBC cover some matches in the Rugby League Challenge Cup, but their coverage is so infrequent that it is impossible to build a sense of understanding amongst the casual sports enthusiast for either the game itself or its leading players, and so the name 'rugby league' is further damaged by an association with the odd live match on BBC, every now and then, too often against a background of half full stadia, as the overall prestige of the Challenge Cup diminishes, year after year. The conclusion that is unwisely reached is that Super League is good, while rugby league is past its sell-by-date. The title of super league is now used by far too many sports for a sport relying on the name Super League to provide it with a unique space in the very busy professional sports marketplace. The smart and simple thing to do is to introduce the name rugby league into the competition's title and create a brand that no one can ever hijack. I would love to see a Rugby League Premiership as the flagship competition of the sport. It would be a tonic for the game and it would restore much of the pride in the game itself that so many fans feel has been eroded by some aspects of the last decade or so with daft gimmicks like Club Call and the Exiles, to say nothing of the Magic Weekend, which sounds like a convention for conjurers and Paul Daniels look-a-likes. (c) 2014 ProQuest Information and Learning Company; All Rights Reserved. |