The Rugby League World Cup is an international rugby league tournament contested by the top national men's representative teams. The tournament is administered by the International Rugby League and was first held in France in 1954 , which was the first World Cup held for any form of rugby football .
107-592: Roy Asotasi (born 6 January 1982) is a former professional rugby league footballer who played as a prop in the 2000s and 2010s. A New Zealand international captain, he also played for Samoa . Asotasi played in the NRL for Australian clubs Canterbury-Bankstown (with whom he won the 2004 NRL Premiership ) and the South Sydney Rabbitohs from 2007 to 2013. He then played in the Super League for
214-408: A final challenge match was hastily arranged which Australia would win 25–0. In 1977, Great Britain competed again as a single entity. Although the final between Australia and Great Britain was a closely fought affair, public interest in the tournament waned due to the continuing tinkering with the format and it was not held again until the mid-1980s. From 1985 to 1988, each nation played each other
321-617: A breakaway faction of England's Rugby Football Union (RFU). Both organisations played the game under the same rules at first, although the Northern Union began to modify rules almost immediately, thus creating a new simpler game that was intended to be a faster-paced form of rugby football. Similar breakaway factions split from RFU-affiliated unions in Australia and New Zealand in 1907 and 1908, renaming themselves "rugby football league s" and introducing Northern Union rules. In 1922,
428-437: A changeing number of teams making the finals and entering the qualifiers, and the unpredictability of the geographic spread of teams automatically qualifying, the format of the qualification tournament has changed with each edition of the tournament. The Rugby League World Cup has followed a varied range of formats throughout its history as the number of teams participating has increased. The current format has been in use since
535-580: A decree by the RFU banning the playing of rugby at grounds where entrance fees were charged led to twenty-two clubs (including Stockport, who negotiated by telephone) meeting at the George Hotel, Huddersfield , on 29 August 1895 and forming the "Northern Rugby Football Union". Within fifteen years of that first meeting in Huddersfield, more than 200 RFU clubs had left to join the rugby league. In 1897,
642-505: A four-year cycle. The World Cup trophy was commissioned by French Fédération Française de Rugby à XIII president Paul Barrière at a cost of eight million francs, and then donated to the International Rugby League Board to be used for the inaugural competition in 1954. This trophy was used and presented to the winning nation for the first four tournaments, before being stolen in 1970. After its recovery,
749-405: A four-yearly cycle in the 2010s; as of 2023 , the holders are Australia . A short-sided version of the sport, rugby league nines , using modified rugby league rules also exists, and is comparable to rugby sevens . Wheelchair rugby league is a mixed-gender sport using heavily modified rugby league rules for disabled and able-bodied players. Unlike wheelchair rugby which adopted its name after
856-437: A mix of the two sports' rules. Much more so than rugby union, rugby league shares significant similarities with North American gridiron codes. Although described as evolving from both rugby and association football , the basic structures of American and Canadian football are remarkably similar to rugby league through a process of parallel evolution: a try-and-goal based scoring system, a set number of plays before handover of
963-470: A number of times on a home and away basis with a number of these games also being considered part of various international tours that took place during the years in which these world cups were being played. At the end of that period, Australia met New Zealand at Eden Park . The match was a physical encounter, and Australian captain Wally Lewis played part of the match with a broken arm. The Kangaroos won
1070-633: A professional level. 45 national teams are ranked by the RLIF and a further 32 are officially recognized and unranked. The strongest rugby league nations are Australia , England , New Zealand , Samoa and Tonga . The Rugby League World Cup is the highest form of representative rugby league. Countries that have contested are Australia , Cook Islands , England , Fiji , France , Ireland , Italy , Jamaica , Lebanon , New Zealand , Papua New Guinea , Russia , Samoa , Scotland , South Africa , Tonga , US and Wales . The 2021 Rugby League World Cup, which
1177-453: A result play stops much less frequently in rugby league, with the ball typically in play for 50 out of the 80 minutes compared to around 35 minutes for professional rugby union. Other differences include that there are fewer players in rugby league (13 compared to 15) and different rules for tackling . Rugby union has more detailed rules than rugby league and has changed less since the 1895 schism. Since rugby union turned professional in
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#17327937988731284-415: A team's creative unit or 'playmakers'. During the interactions between a team's 'key' players (five-eighth, half-back, fullback, lock forward, and hooker), the five-eighth and half-back will usually be involved in most passing moves. These two positions are commonly called the "halves". The forwards' two responsibilities can be broken into "normal play" and "scrum play". For information on a forward's role in
1391-412: A tournament was in 2000 when 26 stadiums were used; the stadium capacity was the highest ever at 704,400. However, the occupancy was also the lowest ever at just 37.46%. The largest stadium in terms of capacity ever used was Wembley Stadium , London with a seating capacity of 90,000; the stadium was used in the 2013 tournament as the venue for the semi-final double-header. The smallest stadium ever used
1498-785: A two-year contract to play for the English Super League club Warrington Wolves . His contract began in 2014. On 20 August 2015, Tony Smith, coach of Warrington confirmed that he would be releasing Asotasi for the 2016 season as he wants space to sign one more player to the team next season. Asotasi finished his Warrington career with 58 appearances, 5 tries and one goal. Rugby league Rugby league football , commonly known as rugby league in English-speaking countries and rugby XIII in non- Anglophone Europe and South America, and referred to colloquially as football , footy , rugby , or league in its heartlands,
1605-401: A value of 2 points when kicked from beyond the 40 metre line. Field position is crucial in rugby league, achieved by running with or kicking the ball. Passing in rugby league may only be in a backward or sideways direction. Teammates, therefore, have to remain on-side by not moving ahead of the player with the ball. The ball may be kicked ahead, but if teammates are in front of the kicker when
1712-557: Is a full-contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular field measuring 68 m (74 yd) wide and 112–122 m (122–133 yd) long with H-shaped posts at both ends. It is one of the two major codes of rugby football , the other being rugby union . It originated in 1895 in Huddersfield , Yorkshire , England, as the result of a split from the Rugby Football Union (RFU) over
1819-474: Is conducted under the direction of the Federation of International Touch (FIT). Though it shares similarities and history with rugby league , it is recognised as a sport in its own right due to its differences which have been developed over the sport's lifetime. Touch is a variation of rugby league with the tackling of opposing players replaced by a touch. As touches must be made with minimal force, touch
1926-462: Is most popular in these regions they have regularly hosted the World Cup between themselves. World Cups in 1985–88 and 1989–92 were all jointly hosted by the four founding nations. New Zealand has never solely hosted a World Cup but they have co-hosted with Australia on three occasions with 2017 also jointly co-hosted with Papua New Guinea. England have co-hosted once with Wales in 2013 although
2033-432: Is the dominant winter sport in the eastern Australian states of New South Wales and Queensland . The game is also among the predominant sports of Tonga and is played in other Pacific nations such as Samoa and Fiji . Researchers have found that rugby league has been able to help with improving development in the islands. In Australia, and indeed the rest of the region, the annual State of Origin series ranks among
2140-555: Is therefore considered a limited-contact sport. The original basic rules of touch were established in the 1960s by members of the South Sydney Junior Rugby League Club in Sydney, Australia . OzTag is a non-contact form of rugby league, and can be seen as a variation of British tag rugby. Cronulla Sharks and St George Dragons halfback Perry Haddock introduced the sport in Australia while coaching
2247-413: Is worth. One of the main differences is the rules of possession. When the ball goes into touch , possession in rugby union is contested through a line-out , while in rugby league a scrum restarts play. The lesser focus on contesting possession means that play focuses more on powerful running, hard tackling, forward progression and the contest for field position (commonly compared to an "arm wrestle"); as
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#17327937988732354-602: The 1953–54 Challenge Cup Final replay at Odsal Stadium , Bradford , England, setting a new record for attendance at a rugby football match of either code. Also in 1954, the Rugby League World Cup, the first for either code of rugby, was formed at the instigation of the French. In 1966, the International Board introduced a rule that a team in possession was allowed three play-the-balls and on
2461-400: The 1999 NRL season . Figure shown is the total attendance which is officially counted for both games. ** The official attendance of the 1954 Challenge Cup Final replay was 102,569. Unofficial estimates put the attendance as high as 150,000, Bradford Police confirming 120,000. Rugby League World Cup The idea of a rugby league World Cup tournament was first mooted in the 1930s with
2568-454: The ARL and NZRL . Since rugby league was introduced to Australia in 1908, it has become the largest television sport and 3rd most attended sport in Australia. Neighbouring Papua New Guinea is one of two countries to have rugby league as its national sport (with Cook Islands ). Australia's elite club competition also features a team from Auckland , New Zealand's biggest city. Rugby league
2675-646: The Canterbury-Bankstown faced Super League IX champions, Leeds in the 2005 World Club Challenge . Asotasi played as a prop in the Bulldogs' 32–39 loss. In 2005, Asotasi played every match of the season before his sequence of 74 consecutive games was interrupted in 2006. He was injured just before the finals but returned to play in the Preliminary Final against Brisbane . Foundation club, South Sydney Rabbitohs signed Roy Asotasi for
2782-634: The International Rugby League . Rugby league is the national sport of Papua New Guinea and the Cook Islands and is a popular sport in countries such as England , Australia , New Zealand , France , Tonga , Fiji , Samoa , Lebanon , Jamaica , and Malta . The first Rugby League World Cup was held in France in 1954, the first World Cup of either rugby code, and has been held sporadically ever since, settling into
2889-704: The New South Wales Rugby Football League was founded at Bateman's Hotel in George Street. Unlike in England, where both codes maintained their own geographic areas of dominance, in Australia rugby league went on to displace rugby union entirely as the primary football code in New South Wales and Queensland , while Australian rules football dominated the rest of Australia. On 5 May 1954, 102,569 spectators watched
2996-749: The Ottawa Aces were scheduled to join the English league pyramid, becoming the only Canadian team in the system after the Wolfpack were denied re-entry. The club subsequently relocated to Penryn, Cornwall , and are now known as Cornwall R.L.F.C. In 2021, the North American Rugby League announced an attempt to be North America's professional championship, with Canadian club Toronto Wolfpack joining several USA Rugby League clubs, New York Freedom and Cleveland Rugby League to form
3103-598: The Rugby League European Federation and Asia-Pacific Rugby League Confederation expanding the game to new areas such as Chile , Canada , Ghana , Philippines , Czech Republic , Germany , The Netherlands , Sweden , Norway , Spain , Sri Lanka , Hungary , Turkey , Thailand and Brazil to name a few. The two most prominent full-time professional leagues are the Australian National Rugby League and
3210-748: The Warrington Wolves . Asotasi was born in Auckland , New Zealand. He is of Samoan descent, A product of the Marist Saints junior club in Auckland , he also attended Marcellin College, Auckland . Asotasi joined Sydney NRL club, the Canterbury-Bankstown club in 2000 as a prop where he was a regular member of their Jersey Flegg Cup team, playing in the Premiership-winning team against Western Suburbs . In 2001 he
3317-556: The line-out was abolished and in 1898 professionalism introduced. In 1906, the Northern Union changed its rules, reducing teams from 15 to 13 a side and replacing the ruck formed after tackles with the play-the-ball . By this point, rule changes meant the game organised by the RFL was distinct as a sport from its union cousin. A similar schism to that which occurred in England took place in Sydney , Australia. There, on 8 August 1907
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3424-460: The "Rugby World Cup". In addition to the hosts, the tournament featured teams from Britain, Australia and New Zealand. The 1954 Rugby League World Cup was won by Great Britain who defeated France in Paris on 13 November to claim the title. Following the success of the maiden World Cup three years later another tournament was held in Australia, marking 50 years of rugby league in the country. Unlike
3531-466: The 1990s, when News Corporation paid for worldwide broadcasting rights. The media giant's "Super League" movement created changes for the traditional administrators of the game. In Europe, it resulted in a move from Rugby League being a winter sport to a summer one, as the new Super League competition tried to expand its market. In Australasia, the Super League war resulted in long and costly legal battles and changing loyalties, causing significant damage to
3638-518: The 1992 St George Jersey Flegg side. Together with Chris Parkes, the two took the sport to fields across Australia. Today, it is played by over 200,000 players in organised leagues across the country. League Tag replaces tackling with the removal of one of two tags carried on an opponent's hips, attached directly to specific League Tag shorts with Velcro patches, but otherwise retains almost all other rules of traditional rugby league (such as kicking). A number of additional rules are also added relating to
3745-579: The 2000 World Cup was played across the UK as well as some games in Ireland and France. France hosted the first World Cup in 1954 and again in 1972 as well as hosting games at the 2000 and 2013 World Cups. Despite the World Cup mainly being hosted by England, Australia, France and New Zealand, countries such as UAE , South Africa and the United States and Canada have applied to host the tournament in
3852-515: The 2017 Kingstone Press League 1 in their inaugural season and earned promotion to the 2018 Rugby League Championship. In 2019 The Wolfpack won promotion to the Super League, lasting only a few months before having to withdraw due to the ongoing worldwide COVID-19 pandemic . New ownership is currently trying to revive the club with matches against amateur clubs in the US and Canada. Beginning in 2022,
3959-421: The 2021 tournament, in addition to the 2000 tournament. This format features 16 teams split into four groups of four playing a single round robin. Each team is awarded two points for a win and one point for a draw. The top two teams from each group qualify for the knockout stage. The eight teams in the quarter-finals play each other with the four winners progressing to the semi-finals before the World Cup final. If
4066-685: The 74,468 crowd which attended the 2013 World Cup final at Old Trafford . The fifth nation to compete in these two tournaments was Papua New Guinea, where rugby league is the national, and most popular, sport. In 1995 , the competition was held in England and Wales. It was again restructured, returning to the traditional "host / co-host" format, and intended (like in 1954) to be a triennial competition. The tournament expanded to ten teams with Fiji, Samoa, South Africa, and Tonga making their world cup deputes. Great Britain had also split permanently into England, Scotland, Wales, and Ireland, although only England and Wales qualified. Unlike previous tournaments where
4173-674: The British Super League (with teams from New Zealand and France respectively). Other professional and semi professional leagues include Australia's Queensland Cup (which includes a team from Papua New Guinea ) and NSW Cup , the British RFL Championship and RFL League 1 , the French Super XIII and Elite 2 . The Papua New Guinea National Rugby League operates as a semi-professional competition and enjoys nationwide media coverage, being
4280-601: The French proposal to hold a tournament in 1931, and again in 1951. The tournament's structure, frequency, and size has varied significantly throughout its history. The winners are awarded the Paul Barrière Trophy , named after Paul Barrière , the French Rugby League President of the 1940s and 1950s. Three nations have won the tournament; Australia twelve times, Great Britain three times, and New Zealand once. Australia has been in
4387-534: The National Rugby League, this was reduced to ten prior to the 2008 season and further reduced to eight prior to the 2016 season. If a team has to interchange a player due to the blood bin rule or due to injury, and this was the result of misconduct from the opposing team, the compromised team does not have to use one of its allocated interchanges to take the player in question off the field. The backs are generally smaller, faster and more agile than
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4494-630: The Northern Union also changed its name to the Rugby Football League and thus over time the sport itself became known as "rugby league" football. In 1895, a schism in Rugby football resulted in the formation of the Northern Rugby Football Union (NRFU). The success of working class northern teams led to some compensating players who otherwise would be on their job and earning income on Saturdays. This led to
4601-698: The Premier League to play in the Preliminary Final against Penrith Panthers but was injured and missed the Grand Final win. In 2004, Asotasi started the season in the NRL premiership and played every game of the season including the 2004 NRL grand final victory over cross-town rivals, the Sydney Roosters . In that same year he was also selected to play for New Zealand. He has played 14 Tests for New Zealand from 2004 to 2006. As 2004 NRL premiers,
4708-411: The RFU reacting to enforce the amateur principle of the sport, preventing "broken time payments" to players who had taken time off work to play rugby. Northern teams typically had more working class players (coal miners, mill workers etc.) who could not afford to play without this compensation, in contrast to affluent southern teams who had other sources of income to sustain the amateur principle. In 1895,
4815-478: The World Cup suffered from poor crowds due to the live broadcast of games for the first time. After a disappointing attendances in 1960, the World Cup would not be played for another eight years. The competition had been scheduled to be held in France in 1965, this time with the inclusion of the South African team . However, after an unsuccessful tour of Australia, the French withdrew, effectively postponing
4922-447: The ball comes into contact with the ground. An attacking team gets a maximum of six tackles to progress up the field before possession is changed over. Once the tackle is completed, the ball-carrier must be allowed to get to his feet to ' play-the-ball '. Ball control is also important in rugby league, as a fumble of the ball on the ground forces a handover, unless the ball is fumbled backwards. The ball can also be turned over by going over
5029-421: The ball is kicked, they are deemed off-side. Tackling is a key component of rugby league play. Only the player holding the ball may be tackled. A tackle is complete, for example, when the player is held by one or more opposing players in such a manner that he can make no further progress and cannot part with the ball, or when the player is held by one or more opposing players and the ball or the hand or arm holding
5136-443: The cities with the next highest number with 3 each. Notes; In total, 21 teams have competed at the World Cup. Of these, only three have won the World Cup, with Australia being by far the most successful with 12 titles. Great Britain has won three titles, however since 1995 have competed separately as England, Wales, Scotland and Ireland. New Zealand became only the third team to win the World Cup in 2008. England, France and Samoa are
5243-469: The code in an extremely competitive sporting market. In 1997 two competitions were run alongside each other in Australia, after which a peace deal in the form of the National Rugby League was formed. The NRL has since become recognised as the sport's flagship competition and since that time has set record TV ratings and crowd figures. The objective in rugby league is to score more points through tries , goals and field goals (also known as drop goals) than
5350-401: The competition 25–12 in front of a capacity crowd of nearly 48,000 spectators. This format was repeated from 1989 to 1992 (with games once again also being part of tours) and Australia won again, defeating Great Britain 10–6 at Wembley Stadium in front of 73,361 people. This crowd remained a Rugby League World Cup record (and a record for any rugby league international match) until beaten by
5457-408: The competition reverting to a 10-team format. The tournament also moved from every three to every four years inline with most other major international sports competitions. Australia hosted the tournament and New Zealand were crowned champions for the first time by beating the host nation at Lang Park , Brisbane . The tournament was once again seen as a success with a 91% average attendance increase on
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#17327937988735564-506: The field further, with sixteen teams entering. This tournament included a New Zealand Maori representative team, the only time this team has taken part, as well as debuts for the Cook Islands, Ireland, Russia, and Scotland. Australia won the tournament by beating New Zealand 40–12 in the final at Old Trafford , Manchester . In the same year, the first Women's Rugby League World Cup was held, with New Zealand defeating Great Britain in
5671-475: The final of every World Cup, except the first in 1954, when they came third (considered to be a complete upset at the time, with bookmakers having Australia as strong favourites). The latest World Cup was held in England in 2022 after being delayed by a year due to the COVID-19 pandemic . The Rugby League World Cup was an initiative of the French who had been campaigning for a competition since 1935. The idea
5778-508: The final. Numerous issues, including poor organization and blown-out scorelines, meant that this tournament was seen as highly unsuccessful with an average attendance just half that of the previous tournament. Due to these problems the competition was put on indefinite hiatus and replaced with the Rugby League Tri-Nations . After the failure of the 2000 World Cup, no plans were made for another tournament until 2008 with
5885-490: The first time in Papua New Guinea. While Australia would claim the title once again and for an eleventh time, the tournament was considered highly successful in terms of competitiveness. The tournament would see Tonga beat New Zealand in the group stages with a score of 28–22 to top the group, the first time a team from outside the top 3 had beaten a top 3 nation in over two decades. New Zealand went on to play Fiji in
5992-681: The five years prior to the Second World War , the sport's popularity increased as Frenchmen became disenchanted with the state of French rugby union in the 1930s. However, after the Allied Forces were defeated by Germany in June 1940, the Vichy regime in the south seized assets belonging to rugby league authorities and clubs and banned the sport for its association with the left-wing Popular Front government that had governed France before
6099-547: The football, each play restarting from a set piece position and ended by a tackle. Although the Canadian Football League in particular maintained the word 'rugby' in its name for many years, alluding to that shared past, the introduction of the forward pass and unlimited substitution in North American games created a fundamentally different species of game from either original rugby code. Although
6206-407: The forwards. They are often the most creative and evasive players on the field, relying on running, kicking and handling skills, as well as tactics and set plays, to break the defensive line, instead of brute force. Generally forwards play a more collision oriented game, making ground by pure strength, and tackling near the play-the-ball. Usually, the stand-off/five-eighth and scrum-half/half-back are
6313-406: The fourth tackle a scrum was to be formed. This was increased to six tackles in 1972 and in 1983 the scrum was replaced by a handover. 1967 saw the first professional Sunday matches of rugby league played. The first sponsors, Joshua Tetley and John Player , entered the game for the 1971–72 Northern Rugby Football League season . Television had an enormous impact on the sport of rugby league in
6420-585: The ground, with the ball usually set in a kicking tee , and the opposing team not allowed to directly challenge the kicker. The Super League in Europe and the National Rugby League (NRL) in Australasia are the world's premier club competitions. Globally, rugby league is played internationally , predominantly by European , Australasian , and Pacific Island countries, and is governed by
6527-493: The group stages and over 66,000 people attending the final, in which Australia defeated England 16–8. Intended for 1998, the next World Cup was delayed for two years due to the Super League war and the subsequent re-structuring of rugby league's international governing bodies meant that the proposed 1998 World Cup was postponed. In 2000 , the World Cup was held in the United Kingdom, Ireland, and France, and expanded
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#17327937988736634-401: The high level of talent they had on offer that year (no Scottish or Irish players made the original Great Britain squad). This resulted in the tournament increasing from four teams to five for the first time. There was not a final held to decide the champions of the 1975 tournament and so Australia won by virtue of topping the group standings. As Australia had not beaten England in that tournament
6741-411: The historic link between the codes continues to be acknowledged, neither Canadian or American football is commonly considered a rugby code today except in the broadest sense, and are more commonly referred to collectively as gridiron codes, or simply as 'football' within their respective countries. Players on the pitch are divided into forwards and backs , although the game's rules apply to all players
6848-440: The invention of the sport previously called murderball and is not directly linked to rugby union, wheelchair rugby league has grown out of the parent sport, and retains key aspects of that sport such as an egg shaped ball, the forward-pass rule and conversions. While not a Paralympic sport, the sport has its own Wheelchair Rugby League World Cup . A further variation for ambulatory disabled players, physical disability rugby league ,
6955-412: The issue of payments to players. The rules of the game governed by the new Northern Rugby Football Union progressively changed from those of the RFU with the specific aim of producing a faster and more entertaining game to appeal to spectators, on whose income the new organisation and its members depended. In rugby league, points are scored by carrying an oval ball and touching it to the ground beyond
7062-448: The league's inaugural season. Several brand new clubs from Western USA were scheduled to join in 2022 but never played. The new competition is sanctioned by Canada Rugby League , but not yet by the United States governing body. Unfortunately, while some exhibition matches were played in 2021 and 2022, NARL was defunct by 2023 The early 21st century has seen other countries take up the game and compete in international rugby league with
7169-453: The mid-1990s, it has increasingly borrowed techniques, tactics and even laws from rugby league, while high-profile players and coaches from the league game have increasingly gone on to success in the union code in those countries where both codes are popular (e.g. Andy Farrell , Jason Robinson and Henry Paul ). The inherent similarities between rugby league and rugby union have at times led to experimental hybrid games being played that use
7276-537: The most popular sporting events. The Rugby League European Federation are responsible for developing rugby league in Europe . In England, rugby league has traditionally been associated with the historic northern counties of Yorkshire , Lancashire , and Cumberland , where the game originated, especially in towns and cities along the M62 corridor . Its popularity has also increased elsewhere. As of 2024 , only two of
7383-436: The most successful competition since 1995 in terms of attendances, exposure and financial output. The tournament saw Italy and the United States play in their first world cup. Australia took the title again after defeating New Zealand in the final by a score of 34–2. The final attendance became the record international rugby league attendance at 74,468. 2017 Rugby League World Cup taking place in Australia, New Zealand and for
7490-413: The national sport of the country. Five main variant sports of rugby league exist worldwide; Touch , OzTag , League tag , Nines , and Sevens . Touch, OzTag, and League Tag are all non-contact versions of the sport, where as Nines and Sevens are both reduced form (shorter match times and smaller teams) of the sport. Touch (also known as touch football or touch rugby) is a variant of rugby league that
7597-561: The new Super League, although the club was dissolved in 1997. In 2006, the Super League admitted the Catalans Dragons, a team from Perpignan in the southern Languedoc-Roussillon region. They have subsequently reached the 2007 Challenge Cup Final and made the playoffs of the 2008 Super League XIII season. The success of the Dragons in Super League has initiated a renaissance in French rugby league, with new-found enthusiasm for
7704-460: The north of England there have been complaints about its lack of profile in the British media. On the eve of the 2017 Rugby League World Cup final where England would face Australia, English amateur rugby league coach Ben Dawson stated, "we're in the final of a World Cup. First time in more than 30 years and there's no coverage anywhere". France first played rugby league as late as 1934, where in
7811-446: The number of teams increased to 16 once again, with Greece and Jamaica debuting in the competition. In 2021, the women's and wheelchair competitions were given equal prominence with the men's tournament, as a result all three competition were run simultaneously for the first time. Australia again won the competition, beating final debutants Samoa 30–10. The 2021 tournament was the most watched rugby league world cup in history, and
7918-474: The only teams to have played in the final and not won. Wales' best result was third under the old format and have made the semi-finals twice while Fiji have appeared in three while Tonga have made the semi-finals just once. Papua New Guinea achieved fourth place under the old format and have made it to three quarter-finals. Four other teams; Ireland, Lebanon, Scotland and the USA have all made the quarter-finals bringing
8025-404: The opposing team's goal line; this is called a try , and is the primary method of scoring, worth four points. The opposing team attempts to stop the attacking side scoring points by tackling the player carrying the ball and denying forward progress. On occasion, where a clear try scoring opportunity has been thwarted by foul play, a penalty try may be awarded without the ball being grounded over
8132-475: The opposition within the 80 minutes of play. If after two-halves of play, each consisting of forty minutes, the two teams are drawing , a draw may be declared, or the game may enter extra time under the golden point rule, depending on the relevant competition's format. The try is the most common form of scoring, and a team will usually attempt to score one by running and kicking the ball further upfield or passing from player-to-player in order to manoeuvre around
8239-400: The opposition's defence. A try involves touching the ball to the ground on or beyond the defending team's goal-line and is worth four points. A goal is worth two points and may be gained from a conversion or a penalty . A field goal, or drop goal, is only worth one point and is gained by dropping and then kicking the ball on the half volley between the uprights in open play. A field goal has
8346-671: The past. NB : As Great Britain was the IRL nation until 1995, the United Kingdom is used to refer to host nations before this time regardless of the number of home nations which actually hosted the tournament. In total, 81 stadiums have hosted world cup games over the 14 tournaments. Headingley Stadium in Leeds has hosted the tournament the most times, having had games in 7 world cups with Central Park , Wigan and Lang Park , Brisbane having hosted 6 tournaments. 52 stadiums have hosted matches in just 1 tournament. The most stadiums used in
8453-542: The position they play, similarly to association football . Substitutes (generally referred to as "the bench") are allowed in the sport, and are typically used when a player gets tired or injured , although they can also be used tactically. Each team is currently allowed four substitutes, and in Australia and New Zealand, these players occupy shirt numbers 14 to 22. There are no limitations on which players must occupy these interchangeable slots. Generally, twelve interchanges are allowed in any game from each team, although in
8560-399: The previous competition. New Zealand became only the third team to win the world cup and the first other than Australia since 1972. 2013 saw England and Wales host the tournament and expanded to 14 teams. The tournament, originally scheduled for 2012, was moved very early in its organisation to 2013 due to the United Kingdom hosting the 2012 Summer Olympics . The competition was considered
8667-405: The previous tournament, teams played each other in a league format. It was then decided that the team that finished first in the league would be declared the winner. Australia proved victorious on their home ground. Another three years would pass until the next World Cup in 1960, this time held in England. It would be the second time Great Britain won the competition. Despite a home nation victory
8774-411: The quarter-finals and lost once again with a score of just 4–2, knocking New Zealand out in the quarter-finals, the first time a tier 1 nation had exited the tournament at this early stage. Tonga played England in the semi-finals and while conceding 20 unanswered points, they would score 3 tries in just the last seven minutes to pull the score back to 20–18, eventually losing by this close margin. The final
8881-501: The same way. Each position has a designated number to identify himself from other players. These numbers help to identify which position a person is playing. The system of numbering players is different depending on which country the match is played in. In Australia and New Zealand, each player is usually given a number corresponding to their playing position on the field. However, since 1996 European teams have been able to grant players specific squad numbers, which they keep without regard to
8988-496: The scrum see rugby league scrummage . Forward positions are traditionally named after the player's position in the scrum yet are equal with respect to "normal play" with the exception of the hooker. Forward positions are traditionally assigned as follows: Rugby league is played in over 70 nations throughout the world. Papua New Guinea is the only country to have rugby league as its national sport . Four countries – Australia, England, France, and New Zealand – have teams that play at
9095-524: The sideline. Rugby league and rugby union are distinct sports with many similarities and a shared origin. Both have the same fundamental rules, are played for 80 minutes and feature an oval-shaped ball and H-shaped goalposts. Both have rules that the ball cannot be passed forward, and dropping it forwards leads to a scrum. Both use tries as the central scoring method and conversion kicks , penalty goals and drop goals as additional scoring methods. However, there are differences in how many points each method
9202-526: The specific issues associated with a tag based game. Rugby League played with nine players per team with nine minutes per half, in addition to slight rule modifications to aid the game. Rugby League played with seven players per team with seven minutes per half, in addition to slight rule modifications to aid the game. The top five attendances for rugby league test matches (International) are: The top five attendances for domestic based rugby league matches are: * NRL double header played to open Round 1 of
9309-663: The sport in the south of the country where most of the Super XIII teams are based. In other parts of Europe, the game is played at semi-professional and amateur level. As of 2023, there is no professional rugby league in North America. From 2017 to 2020, the Toronto Wolfpack were North America 's only active professional Rugby League team, competing in the English Rugby League system. They won
9416-545: The start of the 2007 NRL season. He was selected to captain the New Zealand national team as a prop in the 2007 ANZAC Test loss against Australia . With Souths he played a major part in helping the club to its first finals appearance in over two decades by finishing in seventh position. That year Asotasi was awarded the George Piggins Medal as the club's best and fairest player for the season. Asotasi
9523-405: The teams are level after 80 minutes extra time will be played and if the two teams are still level after extra time, a golden point will be played. This will be temporary altered for the 2026 tournament due to its late rescheduling, the exact format to be used remains unknown. Due to the early World Cups being contested between Australia, England, France and New Zealand and the fact rugby league
9630-449: The top two teams in the table played in the final, a knockout stage was added, with quarter and semi-finals. Due to the Super League war , players aligned with the Super League competition were not selected by the ARL to represent Australia, which meant the absence of many star players. The tournament, which was also held to celebrate the centenary of the sport, saw over 250,000 people attending
9737-463: The tournament after a newly elected French government withdrew financial support. A day later, New Zealand announced they were considering a bid, but would possibly require a delay to 2026. On 3 August, the IRL announced that the tournament would be postponed to 2026 and held in the southern hemisphere with only 10 teams taking part. It was later confirmed on 24 July 2024 that Australia would host
9844-455: The tournament until 1968, when Australia and New Zealand hosted and the World Cup final made a return. The World Cup found more success in the 70s with four tournaments being played. The first, the 1972 World Cup where the final was contested between Great Britain and Australia ended 10–10, and the title was awarded to Great Britain by virtue of their superior record in the qualifiers. Great Britain were captained by Welshman Clive Sullivan who
9951-445: The tournament with a number of games co-hosted by Papua New Guinea. With the announcement of the 2025 World Cup being moved to 2026 came confirmation that the following competition would be held in 2030. In the announcement International Rugby League confirmed that the tournament would be held once again as a stand alone competition with the women's and wheelchair tournaments held separately in 2028 and 2029 respectfully, all on
10058-436: The trophy was reinstated for the 2000 tournament. Qualifying rounds were first introduced for the 2000 World Cup . Hosts and teams reaching the knockout rounds of the previous tournament automatically qualify for the next. The remaining spots are achieved through regional qualification tournaments, split between the four International Rugby League confederation Asia-Pacific, Americas, Europe, and Middle East-Africa. Because of
10165-482: The try line. In addition to tries, points can be scored by kicking goals. Drop goals (or field goals) can be attempted from the hand at any time for a single point. Following a successful try, the scoring team gains a free kick to try at goal with a conversion worth a further two points. Penalty kicks at goal, known simply as penalties, may also be awarded for general foul play, and are also worth two points. Unlike drop goals, penalty kicks and conversions are taken from
10272-507: The twelve Super League teams are based outside of these traditional counties: Catalans Dragons and London Broncos . One other team from outside the United Kingdom, Toulouse Olympique , competes in the British rugby league system , although not at the highest tier Super League level, but rather in the second tier Championship . Super League average attendances are in the 8,000 to 9,500 range. The average Super League match attendance in 2014
10379-580: The war. The sport was unbanned after the Liberation of Paris in August 1944 and the collapse of the Vichy regime, although it was still actively marginalised by the French authorities until the 1990s. Despite this, the national side appeared in the finals of the 1954 and 1968 World Cups, and the country hosted the 1954 event. In 1996, a French team, Paris Saint-Germain was one of eleven teams which formed
10486-424: Was 8,365. In 2018 average Super League match attendance was 8,547. Ranked the eighth most popular sport in the UK overall, rugby league is the 27th most popular participation sport in England according to figures released by Sport England ; the total number of rugby league participants in England aged 16 and over was 44,900 in 2017. This is a 39% drop from 10 years ago. While the sport is largely concentrated in
10593-551: Was again a regular member of the Jersey Flegg Cup team and played in the Premiership-winning team against the Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks as a second-row . By 2002 Asotasi became a regular member of the dogs of war' Premier League team and received the opportunity to join the highest grade of Rugby League in Australia, the NRL against Canberra , when Glen Hughes was injured. He returned to
10700-399: Was also in 2013 when The Gnoll , Neath , with a capacity of 5,000 hosted a game between Wales and Cook Islands . Despite this, it was not the lowest attended game; this was in the 2000 World Cup when just 1,497 attended the game between Wales and Lebanon at Stradey Park , Llanelli . The cities with the most stadiums used are Sydney and London with 4 each. Hull and Auckland are
10807-413: Was contested between Australia and England at Lang Park , Brisbane and Australia won by just 6–0, the lowest score in world cup final history. England were chosen to host the 2021 tournament which was postponed to 2022 due to Australia and New Zealand withdrawing due to the COVID-19 pandemic . with organisers expressing a desire to see a total of one million fans attend games. This tournament saw
10914-552: Was created and had its first world cup in 2022 to coincide with the rescheduled 2021 Rugby League World Cup competitions. Rugby league football takes its name from the bodies that split to create a new form of rugby, distinct from that run by the Rugby Football Unions, in Britain, Australia, and New Zealand between 1895 and 1908. The first of these, the Northern Rugby Football Union , was established in 1895 as
11021-479: Was hosted by England during October and November 2022, staged the Men's , Women's and Wheelchair competitions together for the first time. The competition formerly featured 16 teams, but has been cut down to 10 for the upcoming 2026 Rugby League World Cup . The Asia-Pacific Rugby League Confederation 's purpose is to spread the sport of rugby league throughout their region along with other governing bodies such as
11128-654: Was named the New Zealand national side captain, as of the 2008 Anzac Test Match . He was named in the New Zealand training squad for the 2008 Rugby League World Cup . However, in the round 25 clash against the Sydney Roosters , Asotasi picked up a pectoral injury and was sidelined for the remainder of the season and subsequently, took no part in New Zealand's Rugby League World Cup success. A pectoral injury also interrupted Asotasi's 2012 season. In April 2013, Asotasi captained Samoa in their test match against fierce pacific rivals Tonga . On 2 July 2013, Roy signed
11235-654: Was raised in 1951 by Paul Barrière , the President of the French Rugby League . In 1952, Rugby Football League secretary Bill Fallowfield persuaded the Rugby League Council to support the concept. At a meeting in Blackpool , England in 1953, the International Board accepted Paul Barrière's proposal that France should be the nation to host the first tournament to be officially known as
11342-493: Was regarded as a sporting, commercial, and social success by the IRL. A proposal was put forward in 2016 to hold the 2025 Rugby League World Cup in the United States and Canada, but in December 2018 plans for the tournament to be held in North America were scrapped due to financial concerns. On 11 January 2022, it was announced France would host the tournament in 2025, however on 15 May 2023 France pulled out of hosting
11449-505: Was the first black player to captain any British national sports team. The final at the Stade de Gerland in Lyon witnessed what is (as of 2021) the last British team to win the Rugby League World Cup. In 1975, the competition underwent a radical overhaul with the tournament being held across multiple confederations. Great Britain was split into England and Wales due to Wales wanting to showcase
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