BBC news at 6pm lastnight ran a story on the world cup. That will of gone out to millions

As much as a love RL, some of the games are best 'hidden' at this point in time. Would you really want a national TV audience to see Cook Islands-USA in front of a few thousand at Bristol? and having the games live on free TV may have reduced the ticket sales. I'd rather the BBC audience just saw large crowds at Cardiff, Huddersfield, Hull, Wigan & Wembley roaring England on.

The challenge for RL is to get some of the smaller nations up to speed, and next time we host the BBC may want to show more.

have

But you might get to see me and the 5 (non RL) people I'm taking from work to the Cook Islands v USA match in Bristol !!

Just heard the ad on 6 music .

Looking to the future. As the BBC has little sport in its portfolio would it be worth leaving Sky, taking a hit on income from them and looking to gain more sponsorship due to FTA exposure to cover the monetary shortfall? I've no idea if the BBC would take it on but the question needs to be asked. More exposure and promotion from the BBC could be fantastic for the promotion of the sport over the whole nation. Just a thought.

Can we now give Brian Barwick (and his little black book of media contacts) due credit for the increased exposure on the BBC, or should assume instead that the BBC has suddenly decided to embrace the RLWC for its own purposes ?

I'd say it depends on the size of the hit and the increased exposure.

No idea of our current deal but at the moment we need the ££££'s. I'd be hoping for a better deal next time with BT and premier now both in the mix for sports.

Sky need to see the loss of this international competition as a wake up call. But I would not assume it's as simple as more exposure = better sponsors.

RU and Footy have the balance just right. Their local games on pay TV. The internations on FTA to gain exposure.

I agree with all that.

It is going to be vital at some point to get SL on FTA but at the moment the clubs and RFL can not generate enough income to not have the Sky millions.

I think that is partly the reason, but I also think Channel4's success of showing the Paralympics has woken the BBC up. They were outbid by C4, who completely re-vamped the coverage of a set of minority sports and turned it in to a success. The BBC have publically stated they wished they'd made a better bid, and I feel they are trying to replicate the success with the RL world cup

Our beloved leader is now promting the RLWC: www.express.co.uk/sport/otherspo ... -prospects Haven't got sound on this computer so I've not yet listened to his utterances.

Our beloved leader is now promting the RLWC: www.express.co.uk/sport/otherspo ... -prospects Haven't got sound on this computer so I've not yet listened to his utterances.

Great article in the Radio Times about Tomkins



Very positive article about Tomkins and RL in general. A few snippets

[iAs we sit in the cafe, every now and again Tomkins raises his hand to acknowledge fans who wave as they go by. It's difficult to envisage Gareth Bale having a snack in a Madrid bar without flashmob hysteria ensuing. Tomkins' world record transfer fee remains undisclosed, but best estimates put it in the neighbourhood of £700,000 - less than 1 per cent of Bale's record-breaking move from Spurs to Real Madrid.
"It's crazy," shrugs Tomkins. "The money football generates is ridiculous, probably 150 times what rugby league gets. It's just the way it goes."
He doesn't appear to mind that large swathes of his own country have no idea who he is. "It's quite nice," he says. "It means I can go on nights out and not get done." Besides, he's far too aware of his good fortune to indulge in feeling hard done by. " I get far more acclaim than I deserve. I get so many nice things on the back of playing rugby. What do I do with my money? I've got a couple of nice watches, nice cars. I've got a few houses."
Wait... "a few houses"? Monaco, New York, Bermuda - that sort of thing?
"Wigan," he says. "I bought my mum a house, I've got a house, I bought a couple to rent out."[/i

A nice ending paragraph

[iSomething about Tomkins, so unimpressed by his own star status, feels like a throwback to the way we hope sport might have been before the world became a global village, before football particularly became engorged by its own greed. He is not a "brand". He is a personable bloke eating a sandwich in a cafe. Rugby League may have a fraction of football's money, but as long as it's leading lights are men of Tomkins's calibre, the sport is rich indeed.[/i

But my favourite partAh. But it's true, though, isn't it, that he would almost certainly be richer and more famous if he followed Joel and switched codes? "Yes," he smiles again, "but then I'd have to play Union."
[/i
Well done Tomkins lad! All is forgiven!

What's Hock, Graham, Hardaker and McIlorum been up to?