Sydney (AFP) – Five cities across the Pacific and the United States will host the joint men's and women's 2030 Rugby League World Cup, organisers announced Monday, as the sport looks to tap into lucrative new markets.
Issued on: 09/11/2026 - 01:09Modified: 09/11/2026 - 01:43
The tournament currently underway in Australia has attracted record crowds and television ratings, with big support for nations such as Tonga and Samoa.
The International Rugby League (IRL) said its success had generated unprecedented interest in the United States where there are significant Pasifika communities.
"The IRL board has decided that the next Rugby League World Cup for men and women in 2030 will be staged in the Pacific-USA," IRL chairman Troy Grant said in Sydney.
"This is a strategy to maximise the interest of broadcasters, government partners and fans in the current World Cup, which has regularly broken records for crowds and the number of television viewers.
"At the same time we want to take advantage of opportunities that are opening up in new frontiers where the Rugby League World Cup hasn't previously been played."
The 2030 World Cup, run over five weeks, will expand the number of countries taking part by two to 12 for men, and to 10 for women from the current eight.
The host cities have yet to be decided.
The IRL board signalled that the 2034 World Cup will be played in Europe, coinciding with the 100th anniversary of the game in France, with that decision yet to be rubber-stamped.
At the board's annual general meeting, it was also proposed that Samoa and Tonga be elevated to Tier 1 nations alongside Australia, England and New Zealand.
Samoa became the first Pacific country to play in a World Cup final in 2022, while Tonga are the only Tier 2 nation to have defeated the sport's big three. Both made the men's semi-finals at the current World Cup.
"This is out of respect and acknowledgement of their achievements on two fronts -- obviously their performances on field are without question the equivalent of the current three Tier 1 nations," said Grant.
"Secondly these two nations have taken gigantic leaps forward regarding their governance and what they are doing domestically."
The IRL also agreed to extend the eligibility criteria to represent a nation in a bid to boost the player pool for smaller countries such as the Cook Islands.
Currently, you can do so if a parent or grandparent was born there. That will now be expanded to include great-grandparents.
© 2026 AFP
The content you requested does not exist or is not available anymore.
