In a unique aspect of the partnership, the club’s blossoming Centre of Excellence will also be based at the new hub, providing an unrivalled playing, training and education experience for young players as well as progression opportunities into higher education at the University.
The Centre of Excellence continues to grow from strength to strength, with over 120 male and female players enrolled in various squads from September 2022, who will now benefit from some of the best facilities in the city as they embark on a career in professional sport.
The project will also see Hull FC providing student placements for Sports Health and Exercise Science undergraduates as well as for other courses including media and marketing.
Students will be able to oversee and attend Hull FC training sessions, complete coaching and match official’s courses through FC and the Universities men and women's rugby league programmes will be coached by Hull FC which will ensure the facility will not only provide players of the future, but also coaches, staff and officials.
Hull FC have also committed to a studentship, whilst applied research projects will have the dual benefit of ensuring Hull FC is at the forefront of performance science, whilst enhancing the career prospects of students.
The purpose-built hub will mean the Black & Whites will have a long-term base in the city, whilst also benefitting from the University’s world class facilities.
It will offer enormous benefits not only to Hull FC and the University, but also the wider community, by creating an inclusive, high-quality provision to increase engagement and participation in rugby-related team sport coaching, community and education, regardless of background, age, disability or gender.
It is hoped that the new partnership will inspire a legacy for rugby league in the city, with a 110 per cent increase in participation targeted within the first five years.
Hull FC will now benefit from international-standard sports facilities at the University, which is also an official partner of Team GB, as well as a regional base for the Football Association and Super League netball, and recently hosted the final of the Rugby League Wheelchair Challenge Cup.
Boasting a state-of-the-art high-performance gymnasium and indoor sports arena, sports science laboratories, wrestle areas, video analysis suites, four artificial playing surfaces and over 11 grass pitches, it provides Hull FC and the Hull FC Community Foundation with the very best rugby league facilities the region has to offer.
The funding will also enable an extension to the existing University sports Pavilion to provide a home for the club’s first-team squad, development pathways and community activity - set to open in autumn 2023.