The Spanish Rugby League Association (AERL) is ready to launch its new championship season this Saturday (4 November).

 The ‘Liga MFB’ - named after principal sponsor My Fit Body, a sports nutrition company, will see a six-team Serie A, supported by Serie B in Andalucia and a regional summer league.

 Five Valencian clubs - Bufals Sedaví, Ontinyent, Torrent Tigers, Valencian Warriors and Xativa Roosters - and one from the capital region, Custodians Madrid, based in Getafe - who were triumphant 36-18 over Tigres in last season’s AERL Grand Final - will participate in Serie A.

 It means that the AERL will organise the largest league championship to date, with each Serie A team playing a total of 10 regular season games and a playoff, running from November 2017 to May 2018.

 Aitor Dàvila, director of the national league, commented: “This year we will have an exciting and much more competitive league than in the past. Everybody talks about the top three with Custodians, Tigres and Warriors as favourites for the title but the level of all the teams is much more similar. Xativa, Ontinyent and Sedaví have become very strong. We saw the spread of talent at the regional 9s matches played in the lead up.”

 Serie B, includes San Juan Pitbulls, Tercios Tomares and Sevilla Spartans, while the AERL continues to work with two clubs in Córdoba and similar in Malaga. “The progress of the Seville area is very exciting for the future of the sport, an area where we already have a couple of U18 teams,” continued Dàvila. “We are also in contact with our colleagues in Malaga and Córdoba to create competitions there.”

 And, for the first time, a Valencian U18 competition will be played between Vikings Albal, Tigres Torrent and UER Montcada.