GRANT Wechsel believes previous owners’ failure to come up with a sustainable business plan has left London Broncos on the city’s sporting and cultural periphery.
The Broncos’ glory years in Super League came under Virgin founder Richard Branson’s stewardship, culminating in a Challenge Cup final appearance in 1999, while long-time owner David Hughes kept the club going through thick and thin until this year.
But Wechsel, who acquired a 90 percent share of the Betfred Championship outfit along with former Australia international Darren Lockyer in September, pointed to a lack of foresight off the field as a reason the club has failed to find any level of sustained success and growth.
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“Obviously Richard, you can’t get more high-profile as an owner and we all remember the Virgin sponsorship on the front – and that was more of a heyday for the club,” Wechsel told The Bye Round podcast.
“All credit to [David Hughes] and his passion for the game, he obviously loved the London Broncos and loved rugby league. But he didn’t build a business…[and] to have a successful club, you’ve got to have a successful business around it.
“David was funding it himself and, effectively, from all anecdotes, people would say ‘what do we need to do to improve the club?’ he’d say ‘buy a second-rower’ or ‘buy a centre’ and send some money – but that’s not engaging with the people of London and it’s just furthering your own interest in the club.
“Our view, compared to the heights of Branson or the passion of David Hughes, is we are actually going to do the work to build a sustainable club with members, sponsors, and engage the public.”
The Broncos finished 10th out of 13 teams in the Championship this year and failed in their bid to secure an immediate return to Super League following relegation in 2024.
Instead, Bradford Bulls were promoted back to the top-flight on IMG gradings, while Toulouse Olympique and York Knights were awarded the 13th and 14th places in an expanded 2026 Super League by an independent panel.
London, now playing out of AFC Wimbledon’s Cherry Red Records Stadium in the south-west of the capital, were ranked 16th in the most recent IMG gradings – down two places from last year and behind relegated Salford Red Devils.
Their most recent season in Super League in 2024 saw an average home attendance of 3,178 – the lowest in the competition that year – and Wechsel is determined to grow that by engaging with the community of Australians and New Zealanders living in London.
He wants to attract more Londoners – particularly those in the south of the city – to Broncos games as well, with plans including a return to the team’s spiritual home in Fulham for a one-off game in the same style as rugby union club Saracens’ annual Showdown at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
“We know we’re not North, we don’t have that same fanbase, but we also have a much larger catchment area in terms of sponsors and engagement for different streams of revenue, so we have to go after it,” Wechsel, who also has ex-Brisbane Broncos CEO Paul White for him and Lockyer to lean on for advice, said.
“To use rugby union as an example, they’re taking a big match to Tottenham. There’s no reason we couldn’t take a big match back to Craven Cottage where we started as the Crusaders.
“It’s not relying on the game to do it for us, but actually working with another club…where we could put on a spectacle and attract more fans for a one-off, but then that drives the fans back to our weekly stuff.
“The other big thing is membership…the more members we can have as a club and season-ticket holders, the more people regularly through the gate regardless of the casual fans we attract.”
Ultimately, though, what will truly drive attendances and interest from sponsors, the media, and the wider public is success on the field.
The Broncos have already made some significant signings for the 2026 Championship campaign, with former Australia prop Regan Campbell-Gillard and Tonga international forward Siliva Havili joining.
Former Wakefield Trinity half-back and ex-South Sydney Rabbitohs head coach Jason Demetriou is now at the helm as head coach too, after predecessor Mike Eccles took on a new role as the Broncos’ director of rugby.
“We’ve got a minimum of a year in the Championship, we’re going to have a very good squad for that level…and JD, our coach, is really focused on that,” Wechsel said.
“Even with the Challenge Cup games, they’re going to be a stand-out chance to have a crack too, so that’s going to get people back if you’re winning.”