The Rugby Football League today unveiled ambitious plans to fast-track four clubs into the semi-professional game from outside the game’s heartland.

The potential newcomers to Co-operative Championship One from 2013 include Gillingham-based Medway Dragons, who have made remarkable progress since being formed just four years ago, Hemel, Bristol, Coventry, Northampton, Chester and Oxford.

They have emerged as the seven clubs with most potential from a list of 16 expressions of interest that followed a widespread review of the professional game outside Super League.

The RFL chief operating officer Ralph Rimmer outlined the plans at a media briefing in Brighouse, where he also announced a new television deal with play-per-view broadcaster Premier Sports, who will take over coverage of the Championships from Sky from next season.

“Having harvested areas in the heartland, we need to grow the market to add value to our competition,” Rimmer said.

“We need to re-invent ourselves to some extent and change the rugby league landscape in this country. That is how big the plans are.”

The four new clubs, who will be selected and announced one at a time over the next four months, will be given support from the RFL before joining a 10-club third tier of the professional game in 2013.

Rimmer announced that next year there will be no relegation from the Championship but four clubs will be promoted from Championship One to make way for the newcomers.

Minimum standards, such as a 3,000 stadium capacity, will apply in the 14-club Championship while Rimmer called for a “leap of faith” after accepting there may be initially a lowering of quality on the pitch in the largely expansion Championship One.

Promotion and relegation will continue between the two Championship divisions from 2013.

The job of identifying the four new entrants will fall to former Wakefield chief executive Steve Ferres, who has already undertaken a comprehensive trawl of the interested clubs in his role of RFL club support officer.

“We have undertaken more research than ever before in order to give these clubs a chance of succeeding,” said Ferres, who was involved in new clubs at Carlisle and Kent in the 70s and 80s.

“There are some clever, astute businessmen out there who are rugby league lovers.”

Rimmer also announced plans for an Anglo-French tournament next May featuring the top four clubs from the Championship and their counterparts from the French elite competition, with Toulouse guaranteed entry following their move away from the Championship.

Meanwhile, up to 32 league games and Northern Rail Cup ties a season will be televised live by Premier Sports as part of a two-year deal which does not involve cash but includes a third-year option in favour of the RFL.

Matches will continue to be shown on Thursday evenings and among innovations being considered are coaches giving touchline interviews during the games.

Premier Sports have broadcast live NRL matches this year.