The
men’s competition remains the centrepiece, with Australia looking to defend its title and New Zealand hoping to repeat its historic triumph in 2008.
The World Cup was initially slated to be staged last year in the United States. But after issues with the promoter, the tournament was moved to France, but financial concerns saw organisers withdraw.
The women’s and wheelchair tournaments will also feature eight teams apiece, providing a global showcase for the different forms of the game.
The action begins on Thursday night with the Kangaroos facing the Kiwis in Sydney.
Here is all you need to know before the 2026 Rugby League World Cup.
History
The first men’s World Cup was contested in 1954 with just four teams in France.
Over the years, the format has changed while there has been a revolving door of numbers of teams, with as many as 16 taking part in recent editions.
Australia has historically dominated the men’s competition, winning 12 World Cups, while Great Britain enjoyed considerable success in the early decades, winning three titles, with their last win coming in 1972. New Zealand’s lone success in the World Cup came in 2008.
The women’s tournament has grown considerably since its introduction in 2000 and is now an integral part of the Rugby League World Cup. New Zealand won the first three editions, however Australia have been the dominant team in recent years, winning the last three.
In the wheelchair, it was first played in 2008, with England and France splitting the four titles.
The format
The 2026 men’s competition features 10 teams, with a format designed to make pool matches more consequential and produce a four-team semi-final stage.
The tournament has one pool of four teams and two pools of three. Pool A features four teams with the top two ranked sides advancing to the semi-finals.
Teams in Pools B and C play cross-pool matches rather than a traditional round-robin within their own pool and the top two sides from a combined standings advance to the semi-finals.
The semi-final winners will meet in the final at Brisbane’s Suncorp Stadium on November 15.
Pool A: Australia, New Zealand, Fiji and Cook Islands.
Pool B: England, Samoa and Lebanon.
Pool C: Tonga, Papua New Guinea and France.
With eight teams the women’s tournament is more straightforward.
There are two pools of four and the top two ranked sides advance to the semi-finals.
Group A: Australia, England, Wales, Samoa
Group B: New Zealand, France, Papua New Guinea, Fiji
Matches will be played in Sydney, Brisbane, Perth, Newcastle, Wollongong, Gold Coast, Townsville, Christchurch and Port Moresby.
