Why Australia is staging 2026 World Cup with Papua New Guinea involvement revealed

Australia will host the next Rugby League World Cup in 2026, International Rugby League has confirmed.

The RLWC2026, which has been awarded to the Australian Rugby League Commission by the IRL board, will feature the men’s, women’s and wheelchair tournaments.

The men’s competition will be a 10-team format – a smaller tournament than the 16 teams in previous years – whilst there will be eight nations in the women’s and eight in the wheelchair.

And the World Cup will be played at the end of the respective NRL and Super League seasons in the October and November of 2026.

Whilst Australia will be the primary host nation, the tournament will also include matches in Papua New Guinea, and will showcase the cultures of the Pacific, where the majority of men’s and women’s teams are set to hail from, or have heritage to those nations.

The schedule is expected to include double-headers and even triple-headers to give fans added value for ticket prices.

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‘RLWC2026 promises to be the best and most competitive ever staged’

International Rugby League chair Troy Grant said: “The Rugby League World Cup is the pinnacle of the sport and RLWC2026 promises to be the best and most competitive ever staged.

“On behalf of the IRL Board, I would like to congratulate ARLC Chair Peter V’landys, the ARLC Board, NRL CEO Andrew Abdo and his team on the quality of their bid and I have every confidence that they will deliver the best World Cup on record.

“We have all been impressed by the ARLC’s ventures into Las Vegas, led by Peter and Andrew, and have no doubt that they will elevate the Rugby League World Cup to a new level.

“Rugby league has never been stronger in Australia and the Pacific, with sold-out stadiums, record television ratings and much excitement about Pacific expansion.

“The 2026 World Cup in Australia, with matches to played in Papua New Guinea, will see the rise of the game in the Pacific reach greater heights and ensure rugby league is the number one sport in the region.

“The condensed format at RLWC2026 will mean every single match is competitive, while the possibility of some games being played as double or triple-headers represents great value for fans wanting to see the best rugby league talent on the planet.

“The culture, diversity and competitiveness of the nations involved will capture the attention of global audiences and grow the game ever further.”

Australia has previously hosted the Rugby League World Cup in 2008 and 2017, the latter of which featured the women’s tournament being played alongside the men’s for the first time. The Wheelchair World Cup was also played alongside the men’s and women’s World Cups at RLWC2021 in England: and the three tournaments will again be staged together in 2026.

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