Hull FC are expected to regain Grade A status.

18:16, 14 Oct 2025Updated 18:28, 14 Oct 2025

Hull FC have formed a new Rugby League Development Agreement with North Lincolnshire Council.

The partnership will see the club expand its roots south of the Humber with the ultimate goal of getting more ‘school-age participants’ involved in the sport, creating more pathway opportunities for the club to sign players to their Centre of Excellence programmes, i.e., their scholarship, academy, and college teams.

The partnership also has the goal of developing future coaches and coaching opportunities, with the hope of creating more sustainable community clubs across the unity authority area of North Lincolnshire. The club has already started the partnership at both Baysgarth School, based in Barton Upon Humber, and Immingham Wasps RLFC, engaging with over 330 people.

Meanwhile, the partnership will also benefit the club under the community pillar of the IMG grading system. In fact, Hull Live understands it will ensure Hull will receive 0.5 more points than they got under the pillar last year.

Speaking on the announcement of the partnership, Chief Executive Richie Myler said, “This is a significant announcement for the club and another important step forward as we look to grow our own club footprint and, more importantly, participation in the sport across our own region and surrounding areas.

“While it lies just a couple of miles away from us geographically on the other side of the River Humber, North Lincolnshire has been a largely untapped area when it comes to Rugby League development. With the likes of Lewis Martin and Harvey Barron rising through our ranks after initially coming from footballing backgrounds, we’ve proven that there is a vast pool of young talent out there to be tapped into. And this agreement will not only help us build some new pathways into the sport but hopefully unearth some new talent in the longer term.

“We are already seeing hundreds of young people beginning to engage with the sport for the first time, and these numbers will only grow as the partnership develops over the coming months and years.

“2025 has been a significant year of development across the club as we lay the foundations for an exciting few years ahead, and this is just another piece of that jigsaw for us; I’d like to thank the team at North Lincolnshire Council and the Get Ahead Partnership for their vision in linking up with us, as well as our teams behind the scenes within the Hull FC Community Foundation and Centre of Excellence for putting in the legwork to get this off the ground.”