Widnes Vikings remain a Grade B club, with an overall score of 9.11 points, placing the Vikings 18th in the latest IMG grading.
Our overall score has increased slightly across the Performance and Stadium pillars, while there have been small reductions in the Fandom, Finance and Community pillars.
It is important for us to provide some context around these changes.
In the Fandom pillar, our score has reduced by 0.13 points. This comes despite the club recording significant growth, including 10% year-on-year increases in both social media engagement and website visits.
The reduction is therefore a result of changes to the criteria and methodology used to assess this pillar, rather than a decline in supporter engagement.
The other notable reduction has come in the Community pillar. One of the main criteria previously used to assess this area was linked to population, something which is outside the control of any club.
This element has now been removed from the grading process, creating what we believe is a more consistent and level playing field for clubs moving forward.
It is also important to recognise that participation in the IMG grading process is not compulsory, and not every club has chosen to submit a grade this year.
Widnes Vikings have continued to participate because we believe in the importance of independent benchmarking, transparency and measuring ourselves against the standards required to move the club forward.
However, it is also important to understand that Central Funding from the Governing Body is no longer linked to the IMG grading process.
As an example, the decision not to stream five games with commentary and graphics results in a 0.25-point reduction. Similarly, we have not undertaken a limited assurance review of our accounts, which also results in a 0.25-point reduction.
These are areas where additional investment would have improved our IMG score, without financial reward. As a club, we have to carefully manage where our resources are allocated, with our priority being to build the most competitive team possible while continuing to develop the club sustainably off the field.
We also recognise that, even with those additional points, a significant increase in our IMG score would still be required to bridge the ever-growing gap towards Super League.
Remaining a Grade B club, while continuing to make progress in key areas, gives us a clear platform to build upon.
We do, however, believe that changes to the criteria used within the grading pillars have created a greater divide between the Championship and Super League. In our view, this is contrary to the original intention of IMG grading, which was to create a framework that would help clubs improve and ultimately provide a pathway towards greater competitiveness across the game.
We remain happy to participate in IMG grading as a benchmarking tool, and we will continue to use it to identify areas where Widnes Vikings can improve.
However, our position remains firmly that, as with any professional sporting competition, promotion and relegation must ultimately be determined by performance on the field, subject to clubs meeting appropriate minimum standards.
For that reason, Widnes Vikings will continue to be one of the many clubs campaigning for the return of genuine promotion and relegation within rugby league.
The Board, staff, players, partners and volunteers remain fully committed to improving Widnes Vikings, both on and off the field, and we are proud of the progress being made.
We will continue to build, continue to improve and continue to strive for a future where success on the field determines how far this club can go.
Full grading can be found in the image below
