Richie Myler has provided an extensive update on all things Hull FC ahead of the 2026 season. Hull Live sat down with the club’s CEO to discuss a range of topics, from restoring pride to kicking on this year, growth, recruitment, retention, Las Vegas, and more.

Dan Tomlinson: Richie, you’ve been at Hull FC for nearly two years now, can you sum up the club’s progress and growth in that time?

Richie Myler: I think we’ve made a lot of progress and our connection with our fan base is back. That was the main thing that I thought we lost; that and our identity and our pride. The players did a tremendous job of restoring that last year. We’ve seen it in our numbers; our season ticket sales are up by nearly 2,000 people, which is huge.

We’ve sold over 9,000 in total – it just shows you that Hull is a sleeping giant – a true hub of rugby league. I never realised just how big the club was from the outside. Maybe I was a bit naïve, but just to see how passionate and how loyal the fans are has been unbelievable. It’s been amazing, but really, I’m just glad that we’re being taken as a serious club again. That’s probably the biggest change that I’ve seen in the time I’ve been here.

DT: After a year of consolidation, there’s a real belief now that the club can kick on and get to the next level. How do you do that?

RM: We had a good year last year in doing a lot of the basics really well and getting our identity, connection, and cohesion back. That took a lot of hard work, but it also took its toll on the players and we ended up decimated with injuries at the back end of the season.

We’ve recruited really well in the off-season to thicken up the squad and we’ve got a hungry team that wants to go out and repeat all of the effort areas and everything that they did well last year. I think we’ve got a lot more balanced talent now, too, and a lot of players will complement each other, but we need to be more consistent. I think that’s a fair point. There were games last year where we got some phenomenal results, winning at Wigan twice – that’s unheard of – but then we slipped up in other games. It’s having that consistency in our performances and keeping ourselves fit and on the field. That will help us get to the next level.

I also feel a lot more confident in our depth this year, and the guys outside of that top 17 are training really hard – some of them will be a little unfortunate to miss out in round one, I think, from the way that they have trained. Competition is really strong.

DT: On that competition, you’ve signed eight new players for 2026 with experience sought again. Clearly, it’s been a strategic process to further enhance the squad?

RM: For sure. There is a load of experience in there and there are a load of quality players. We’ve recruited players that have been in winning and professional environments: James Bell and Joe Batchelor from St Helens, they have won cups and titles before in their careers and they know what it takes, and Harvie Hill from Wigan; he has been phenomenal this pre-season, just in the way he has carried himself. It’s an exciting time and it’s exciting to be around a group of hungry players who want to do well.

DT: How important has that experience been in helping bring on the club’s younger players, some of which – Lewis Martin, Davy Litten, Harvey Barron, etc., will be mainstays of the side again this year?

RM: The experienced players have created an environment for our young talent that is fit for purpose and that can hold itself accountable. I think that’s been the biggest thing. Even those players who have left us, like Jordan Rapana, what Jordan brought to the club was phenomenal. He brought steel and a way to conduct himself as a professional rugby league player. Our young players will learn from that and take guidance from that and that will only stand us in good stead.

We’ve heavily invested in our youth. We’ve got a great academy programme and a great youth setup coming through, and we want to reward our youth. If you look at the teams who have won Super League, Hull KR went against the status quo last year, but the clubs who have been at the top consistently have developed their own players and have them playing in their team. We’re massive on that, and giving those guys a chance and a pathway that they can see and that is achievable is great.

We’ve got a lot of those players locked in – they are the future of the club. We just need to make sure that we keep growing and we keep putting them forward, but what we’re finding is our young players are taking their opportunities. Lewis, for one, has earned his spot and I think he’s just going to grow and grow. He’s not the only one either.

DT: There are 11 first-team players out of contract at the end of the year. How do you see recruitment and retention shaping up for 2027? Will there be many changes?

RM: Recruitment and retention is the number one aspect of this business, and if you get that wrong, it can quickly unravel. We haven’t got everything right, but what we have done well and what Andrew (Thirkill) and David (Hood, co-owners) have been so supportive on, is if we have made a mistake or if we’ve not quite got something right, they have acted on it quickly, which has been really good.

Going into this year, I think we have got a squad from the outset that are connected and who all fit in, whereas going into last year we were trying to play catch-up. We did recruitment late, John (Cartwright, head coach) was still in Australia, and we were behind the eight ball.

Now we’ve already started to plan for 2027, 2028, and 2029. There are a lot of things in the air at the moment. There are players off contract who are good-quality players who have got the first crack at trying to get a new contract. They’re the guys in the jerseys and the ones who are in the prime spot. They are ready to go and put their best foot forward.

It’s always evolving. I’ve probably got about four to five different scenarios that could play out. We don’t really know how it will play out until we get into the year but we’re looking forward to it. It’s just a breath of fresh air to be able to look forward and not backwards.

DT: Super League will see some change this season, with 14 teams, three promoted sides, and new narratives and dynamics. What do you make of it all?

RM: It’s good. We are in a competition where every other club is strengthening and recruited well. We played Wigan on Sunday and they looked strong. Hull KR will be strong. Warrington have got a lot of good young players coming through and they will be strong. St Helens have got a new coach. Catalans have signed really well. Wakefield were strong last year and they will build again. There are six, seven, or even eight clubs now who can compete, and it will be a challenge, but it’s exciting.

There’s a lot of good going on in the game right now and I’m just happy that Hull is on the right path. There’s the biggest point; we’re on the right trajectory. How long it takes to get back up there with the big boys, I don’t know, but I know that we’re on the right path.

DT: On that note, how important is it for the club to stay grounded? This is a big rebuild, and in some respects, it’s still in it’s infancy?

RM: Massively. The big clubs have been doing this a lot longer than we have and the reality is we’ve got a lot of catching up still to do. I think we’ve come a long way in a short period of time to start to get back to where we want to be, but I still think we’ve got a way to go to be fighting with the big boys week in, week out. We’ve got a lot of talent in the team and I know we’ve got a team that will put the badge first and work really hard to make sure that the team puts in good performances. If we do that, we’ll be okay.

DT: Off the field, you have recruited two key figures in Sian Jones and Tony Sutton. What will their roles be this year and how important are they to the infrastructure of the club?

RM: We want to make Hull a top club again and to do that you have to have good people around you. They end up making your job easier, and those two individuals have come in with amazing CVs and amazing credibility in their own fields. They’ve both been incredible. Sian is going to be phenomenal for our matchday experience, our events, and our club as a whole, and Tony has a great handle on the club in a business and financial sense.

It also takes a lot of pressure off me and allows me to focus on rugby. My head has been out of the water a little bit, which has been nice, but ultimately, it gives me a chance to focus on the squads for 2027, 2028, and 2029, and forward planning and thinking, instead of firefighting 24/7. I’m very lucky and very blessed to have those two people in there with me.

DT: Andrew has said he wants the club to be sustainable as well as successful. How do you do that?

RM: A lot of benefactors are putting money in to stand clubs up and the benefit that we have is that we have the potential to grow. We see that in our member, commercial, and retail numbers, and that’s what Sian and Tony will be great at. One of Andrew’s main pillars is sustainability, but it’s sustainability by generating revenue and being highly competitive on the field. The fans can see that.

We are at the full salary cap; we’re at full dispensation; we’re all guns blazing. That team that goes on the field, yes, we’re still trying to find ourselves, and we’re paying certain salaries that are higher than what we would like, but the reality is success and sustainability go together, and we are pushing the boat out to become a number one team. That’s what we’re striving to be.

DT: Rhodri Jones said Hull FC are ‘in the driving seat’ to play in Las Vegas. What’s the latest on 2027?

RM: We came late into the party for 2026; we were trying to find ourselves, and we entered the conversation with Leeds, Hull KR, and St Helens. We were very late to that party and we understood that it would be best to wait and put our hat in the ring for 2027. We’d love to be a part of it. We’ll have conversations in the next few months and if it transpires that it is 100% the right thing for the club, both commercially and in terms of playing, then we’ll do it.

DT: And finally, you’re two years on from playing now, how are you finding life as Hull FC’s CEO, and what is your parting message ahead of the 2026 season?

RM: I love it. I don’t miss playing. My body had had enough and my mind had had enough of getting up sore 24/7. I’m in a good place and I’m feeling confident with the staff and everybody that is around the club. I feel like the club is on the right path and heading in the right direction, and the playing group understand the responsibility that they’ve got. They’re looking forward to the challenge, and when you’ve got a group of players that are ready for the challenge, that’s a really exciting place to be.

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