A 2026 WORLD CUP in the Southern Hemisphere is part of long-called-for fixed international calendar which features the return of the Ashes, both home and away, and a tour of England by New Zealand.
The International Rugby League unveiled the plans, which also include Northern and Southern Hemisphere Tri-Nations and Four Nations tournaments, at a meeting in Singapore, held in the wake of France’s withdrawal from hosting the World Cup in 2025 for financial reasons.
The men’s component of the 2026 World Cup, the venue for which the IRL says will be decided by the end of this year, will be streamlined, with ten rather than 16 teams taking part.
And there will be greater emphasis on regional championships in the Americas, Asia-Pacific, Europe and Middle-East Africa with a new ‘World Series’ introduced with the aim of helping nations develop.
The quarter-finalists from last year’s World Cup in England – Australia, Samoa, New Zealand, England, Tonga, Fiji, Papua New Guinea and Lebanon – will qualify automatically, with the remaining two spots fought out through a yet-to-be-determined qualifying process.
The four semi-finalists in the 2022 women’s (Australia, Papua New Guinea, England and New Zealand) and wheelchair (France, Australia, England and Wales) tournaments will feature automatically, with the other berths decided through qualifying.
After 2026, Women’s World Cups will be staged as stand-alone tournaments every four years, with the first in 2028, so creating a two-yearly cycle, with the next men’s in 2030.
The IRL say the move recognises the rapid development of the women’s game and the success of the ongoing stand-alone FIFA Women’s World Cup in Australia and New Zealand.
A tender process to host the respective events will start this year.
The IRL says they are working to determine where best to position the next Wheelchair tournament after 2026.
But the IRL is not planning to run any more World Cup 9s tournaments “as IRL focuses on developing 13-a-side and Wheelchair games.”
After 2026, international rankings will be used to determine World Cup qualification.
The first Ashes series since 2003 (plans to revive the concept in 2020 fell victim to the pandemic) will take place in 2025, when England as opposed to Great Britain men’s and women’s teams will head to Australia to face the respective reigning world champions.
New Zealand will tour England (for the first time since 2015) in 2027 and will be followed by Australia in 2028.
Tonga’s tour of England this year has already been confirmed, and there will also be a tri-series between Australia, New Zealand and Samoa. IRL chair Troy Grant said: “It is no secret that the Achilles heel for international Rugby League for far too long has been the absence of an international calendar.
“The ad hoc nature of tournaments and international matches, and the absence of any clarity for nations, players and fans, is over.
“Our calendar will allow us to secure the future of international Rugby League, with quality and consistent matches that are competitive, build on traditional rivalries and showcase the greatest game on earth.
“And it will help rejuvenate and allow the game to grow globally, recognising the elite and providing pathways for development across all levels.
“The calendar respects player workloads and, importantly, also reduces the impact on professional clubs.
“The standards have improved dramatically in recent years regarding player welfare and player workload issues, and they were key considerations in the calendar design.”
KEY DATES
2023: Tonga tour of England, Tri-series between Australia, New Zealand and Samoa.
2025: England men’s and women’s Ashes tour.
2026: World Cup (men’s, women’s and wheelchair) in Southern Hemisphere.
2027: New Zealand tour of England.
2028: Men’s Ashes series in England, women’s World Cup.
2030: Men’s World Cup.
