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Report: 2025 World Cup on verge of collapse


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2 hours ago, Madrileño said:

Why?

-Because it makes a profit?

-Because it generates huge amounts of positive media coverage for its host nation?

-Because it attracts tens of thousands of tourists from other countries and also within France?

-Or... Because it is governed globally by a professional governing body who actually do proper due diligence on the multiple bids to host it every 4 years?

Take your pick. 

Hate to say it but your bang on there mate. League is the better game but union are better in the administrative department.

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3 minutes ago, moorside roughyed said:

Hate to say it but your bang on there mate. League is the better game but union are better in the administrative department.

Comparatively speaking, they're playing on easy mode.  Not everybody is pulling themselves up by their bootstraps and one game strongly benefits from its position as the sport for wannabe British poshos worldwide.

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Sadly nothing surprises me in RL any more. This whole thing is beyond a joke. And will further confirm to the people of power within the game down under that NH RL isn’t worth pursuing.

Plan b will likely be us begging the NRL to get some games down there.

Pains me to say it, but as a sport we are quite pathetic.

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2 hours ago, Madrileño said:

You break it by getting buy in from the main nations.

You effectively cede control to the big nations, as it is them who will always drive the sport.

The IRL should be 'run' by the professional nations effectively.  With them holding the bulk of the decision making power. They are the ones who are also most likely to benefit from a bigger global game. 

If one of those big nations sees little return and doesn’t put much effort in it becomes an ever decreasing vicious circle. 

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I haven't read the whole thread, but I assume it has been mentioned that this is the 2nd time this tournament has failed - it was originally awarded to USA and now France. 

No doubt some will look for others to blame, but the failure of our international game lies squarely at our own door. 

We are pathetic. 

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1 minute ago, Madrileño said:

Don't. 

(Unless you want to hear the usual tripe excuses which inevitably include the word "Vichy" 🙄 )

No, one post mentioned vichy and that was just to say this is French RL’s worst moment since then.

You’re being deliberately disingenuous 

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1 hour ago, bbfaz said:

This was Australia's World Cup.  They tried to pie it off on the US & Canada and then France.  As the biggest and richest NGB, they need to step up and stop shirking responsibility.

Yep. Our game - certainly the international game - relies on Aus stepping up to their responsibilities…

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15 minutes ago, Phil said:

 

You’re being deliberately disingenuous 

Nonsense.

Every time there is a thread about League in France on here, we find some old duffer droning on about 'Vichy'.

10 posts about it since the start of April alone. 

Newsflash: Nobody Cares!

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Wow. Although only an occasional spectator and more general sports fan - attended 3 RLWC games in the autumn, and have been to Rhinos a few times too - I am pretty gutted for the sport at learning this. I observed on here around RLWC that lack of structured international programme in between World Cups is a barrier to attracting more fans to the game. Missing a World Cup is a different level, though, and really doesn't do the sport's image any favours at all. Other sports have had to relocate / postpone some big tournaments - cancel in covid times - but the thought that noone is likely to pick up the hosting says something about the attitude to the international game.

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2 minutes ago, Madrileño said:

Nonsense.

Every time there is a thread about League in France on here, we find some old duffer droning on about 'Vichy'.

10 posts about it since the start of April alone. 

Newsflash: Nobody Cares!

Well you obviously do given that you’ve gone to the trouble of counting them 

"Freedom without socialism is privilege and injustice, socialism without freedom is slavery and brutality" - Mikhail Bakunin

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6 minutes ago, Madrileño said:

Nonsense.

Every time there is a thread about League in France on here, we find some old duffer droning on about 'Vichy'.

10 posts about it since the start of April alone. 

Newsflash: Nobody Cares!

Considering even one topic like this has had 334 posts in 4 days then you are talking tens of thousands of posts on this forum since the start of April. 10 posts since the start of April mentioning Vichy would be considerably less than 1% of all posts. Not many at all.

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28 minutes ago, Dave T said:

I haven't read the whole thread, but I assume it has been mentioned that this is the 2nd time this tournament has failed - it was originally awarded to USA and now France. 

No doubt some will look for others to blame, but the failure of our international game lies squarely at our own door. 

We are pathetic. 

I've definitely seen it mentioned elsewhere and it is really damning for rugby league.

To have a holistic view: I don't see how any of the IMG 'boost' can work without an international game that attracts casual fans in and I don't see how the game can survive in any meaningful way in England (even at its current contracted level) on diehards alone.

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3 minutes ago, N2022 said:

Wow. Although only an occasional spectator and more general sports fan - attended 3 RLWC games in the autumn, and have been to Rhinos a few times too - I am pretty gutted for the sport at learning this. I observed on here around RLWC that lack of structured international programme in between World Cups is a barrier to attracting more fans to the game. Missing a World Cup is a different level, though, and really doesn't do the sport's image any favours at all. Other sports have had to relocate / postpone some big tournaments - cancel in covid times - but the thought that noone is likely to pick up the hosting says something about the attitude to the international game.

On reflection - and I say this not as a jibe, because I want the sport to thrive - maybe the sport's image won't suffer all that much. As someone with a little exposure to the game, I've only just clocked this was on the agenda, so assuming something else is sports headline news by tomorrow morning it might completely bypass the average sports fan. Just a bit of material for union fans, I guess.

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3 minutes ago, gingerjon said:

I've definitely seen it mentioned elsewhere and it is really damning for rugby league.

To have a holistic view: I don't see how any of the IMG 'boost' can work without an international game that attracts casual fans in and I don't see how the game can survive in any meaningful way in England (even at its current contracted level) on diehards alone.

Agree. Basically, I sense that England is the only country that currently seems to see any potential to make a commercial gain from hosting a World Cup, whilst also caring particularly about what the tournament represents / achieves.

Aus could make the finances work but don't seem bothered on some level. Happy with NRL / Origin.

NZ somewhere near that

Pacific Islands maybe like the idea of the World Cup but aren't equipped to host. 

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So, BBC report suggests Aus and/or NZ will take on the hosting of this in 2026. I am interested to know if people think that is likely. I genuinely wonder how bothered they - Aus especially - are about international RL, and with the women's and wheelchair to factor in too, they might feel (not my view, I am keen to add) it's a lot of work for something that doesn't appeal to them. Thoughts?

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The problem was awarding the tournament to France. The insignificant public interest in RL in France isn't sufficient to support a successful tournament there. It was hoped that it would be a shot in the arm for the game there but more likely a loss making embarrassment. 

In hindsight, it's the for the best. Now that French RL is in such a feeble state, only UK and Australia/NZ are places where a WC can be held with some certainty of a profitable tournament. 

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20 minutes ago, N2022 said:

So, BBC report suggests Aus and/or NZ will take on the hosting of this in 2026. I am interested to know if people think that is likely. I genuinely wonder how bothered they - Aus especially - are about international RL, and with the women's and wheelchair to factor in too, they might feel (not my view, I am keen to add) it's a lot of work for something that doesn't appeal to them. Thoughts?

It's been said before, but bears repeating, that Australians are much less interested in international sport than most countries. The 2 biggest sports either have a very small international presence (RL), or none at all, (AFL). So a worryingly high amount of Aus RL fans won't really mind if the World Cup disappears.  

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28 minutes ago, N2022 said:

So, BBC report suggests Aus and/or NZ will take on the hosting of this in 2026. I am interested to know if people think that is likely. I genuinely wonder how bothered they - Aus especially - are about international RL, and with the women's and wheelchair to factor in too, they might feel (not my view, I am keen to add) it's a lot of work for something that doesn't appeal to them. Thoughts?

2026 is a long way away....I don't think we will see another WC again TBH, less and less people play the sport outside of AUS and Pacific islands, the English game is shrinking avery year losing kids to football, and less money in the sport as the game retreats to a small corridor along an improvished part of the UK.

 

 

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As I've said before, can I please watch England vs the Kangaroos. I want a 3 match Test Series up here in 2024. Then an England tour of PNG and Australia in 2026. Then the 'Roos up here in 2028 etc...

As for the Kiwis, England can play them in 2025, up here. Tonga are coming up this year, as most ppl on here know, I hope they know in any case.

RL shouldn't really have a WC, there aren't enough nations playing the sport. If you do insist on a WC then it should be 8 nations, England, France, Australia, NZ, PNG, Fiji, Tonga and Samoa.  

 

Cymru Am Byth/New South Wales

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Just now, LlanWests said:

As I've said before, can I please watch England vs the Kangaroos. I want a 3 match Test Series up here in 2024. Then an England tour of PNG and Australia in 2026. Then the 'Roos up here in 2028 etc...

As for the Kiwis, England can play them in 2025, up here. Tonga are coming up this year, as most ppl on here know, I hope they know in any case.

RL shouldn't really have a WC, there aren't enough nations playing the sport. If you do insist on a WC then it should be 8 nations, England, France, Australia, NZ, PNG, Fiji, Tonga and Samoa.  

 

This is the football version of Scotland football team wanting to play Brazil. Whats in it for Brazil?

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1 minute ago, crashmon said:

This is the football version of Scotland football team wanting to play Brazil. Whats in it for Brazil?

Uh? Many in Australia want to see the 'Roos play against Eng.

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Cymru Am Byth/New South Wales

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Just now, crashmon said:

This is the football version of Scotland football team wanting to play Brazil. Whats in it for Brazil?

Comparing England RL to Scotland football is harsh, but let's say England RL is roughly equivalent to England football - often touted as having a chance at major tournaments but haven't won one in decades. If Australia RL are whichever of Brazil and Argentina is stronger at any given moment, I suspect the answer to your question is very little - the satisfaction of putting a pretender back in its place? And it wouldn't just be one game, so more incentive needed for them to give up a week or two for mini-series. Financially, I don't think this could be a big pull for Aus players, and they don't need the profile of the game raised as badly as we do. 

 

6 minutes ago, crashmon said:

2026 is a long way away....I don't think we will see another WC again TBH, less and less people play the sport outside of AUS and Pacific islands, the English game is shrinking avery year losing kids to football, and less money in the sport as the game retreats to a small corridor along an improvished part of the UK.

 

 

 

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