The Rugby Football League has been handed a £16m emergency loan by the government to help “protect the entire sport” throughout the Covid-19 pandemic. Many clubs within the professional game had expressed fears that without external financial support the sport faced a bleak future, with the Hull KR chairman, Neil Hudgell, having warned rugby league could cease to exist as a full-time sport by next year. However the RFL’s plea to the government has been answered, with all clubs within the sport’s three professional divisions – Super League, Championship and League One – eligible to apply for funding. The government says the funding has been issued due to the value rugby league provides for its local communities, plus the importance of next year’s World Cup in England. “This support enables the sport to survive, to reshape and to be ready to restart in our 125th year,” the RFL’s chief executive, Ralph Rimmer, said. Oliver Dowden, the secretary of state for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, said: “We recognise that many clubs operate on very tight financial margins. Without their ability to stage matches with spectators and despite the government’s extensive economic package, the professional game has come very close to collapsing. This is a massive shot in the arm to secure the survival of rugby league. “Sports across the board are facing unprecedented pressures, and we are supporting them through wider government measures. In this case we are intervening as an exception, not to save an individual business or organisation, but to protect an entire sport, the community it supports, the World Cup held here next year, and its legacy for generations to come.” How the £16m rescue package is distributed is likely to be discussed by the RFL and its clubs in the coming days. Many in Super League privately believe the funding should be heavily weighted towards top-flight clubs, though with the government underlining the importance of rugby league to its local communities, a significant portion will probably be spent on funding the sport at grassroots level. The government’s confirmation that the money has been issued as an emergency loan, rather than a grant, also implies rugby league will be responsible for repaying it over a period of time, though the terms have not been disclosed. “Rugby league is a sport that makes a significant social impact in the communities it serves, which is even more important now as we respond to the economic pressures resulting from Covid-19,” Steve Barclay, chief secretary to the Treasury, said.