How will the Super 8s work?

Clubs will each play their fixtures on a league basis. Clubs which have performed strongest in their respective competitions in the regular season will be rewarded with four fixtures as follows: the top four Betfred Super League clubs will play four home matches; in the Qualifiers, the team finishing 9th and 10th in Betfred Super League and the top two teams from the Betfred Championship will have four home matches; in the Betfred Championship Shield, clubs finishing the regular Betfred Championship season in 5th to 8th place will have four home fixtures.

In Betfred Super League and Betfred Championship Shield the competing clubs will carry over the points and scoring records from the regular season into the Super 8s. The Qualifiers will start with zero points because the eight clubs are drawn from two different competitions.

How is the fixture schedule for the Super 8s determined?

The Super 8s fixtures are produced using a merit formula which rewards teams for the consistency and excellence of their results in the regular season. The higher a team finishes after 23 rounds, the more favourable their fixtures in the Super 8s are. For example, the team that finishes 1st will have home games against the teams finishing 2nd and 3rd and be away to the teams that finished in 7th and 8th.

As with the regular season, the scheduling of fixtures will be determined by a range of factors, including the fairest balance of alternate home and away games for all clubs, stadium availability and broadcast preferences.

How are teams ranked on the grid?

In Betfred Super League, teams are ranked 1 to 8 based on finishing positions after 23 rounds.

In The Qualifiers, teams finishing 9th and 10th in the regular Betfred Super League season are ranked 1 and 2, and teams finishing the regular Betfred Championship season 1st and 2nd are ranked 3 and 4. Betfred Super League clubs finishing 11th and 12th are ranked 5 and 6, and Betfred Championship clubs finishing 3rd and 4th are ranked 7 and 8 

In the Betfred Championship Shield, teams finishing the regular season in 5th to 12th place are ranked 1 to 8.

Why is the Qualifiers grid different to the Super League and Championship Shield grids?

The Qualifiers grid has to be slightly different because of the way in which the Qualifiers brings together clubs from two different competitions, the Betfred Super League and Betfred Championship. The principle of a merit formula rewarding teams who finish higher in their respective League remains unchanged: the Betfred Super League clubs finishing 9th and 10th and the Betfred Championship Clubs finishing 1st and 2nd will each have four home games.

When will the Super 8s fixtures be published?

Details for the Betfred Super League, The Qualifiers and Betfred Championship Shield Super8s will all be published on Wednesday August 1 (12pm): this will allow all clubs to feed in details of their stadium availability once the regular season has been completed and give broadcasters the opportunity to select televised fixtures for the early rounds of Super 8s. The Super 8s then begin on Thursday August 9.

What happens after clubs have played seven matches in the Super 8s?

The top four clubs in Betfred Super League will go into the play-offs: 1st v 4th and 2nd v 3rd, on Thursday October 4 & Friday October 5 respectively. The winners of those two matches will contest the Betfred Super League Grand Final on Saturday October 13 at Old Trafford (6pm KO). All eight Betfred Super League clubs are guaranteed top flight status for the following season.

In The Qualifiers, the top three clubs at the conclusion of the Super 8s will have earned a place in the Betfred Super League for 2019. The 12th place in Betfred Super League for the following season will be determined by the Million Pound Game, a play-off between the 4th and 5th placed clubs played at the home of the 4th placed club on Saturday October 6. 

In the Betfred Championship Shield, the top four clubs enter a play-off, 1st v 4th and 2nd v 3rd, with the winners contesting the Betfred Championship Shield final on Sunday 7 October. 

The bottom two teams (7th and 8th) in the Betfred Championship Shield will be relegated to Betfred League 1.