Report: 2025 World Cup on verge of collapse

[Sports Prophet]

5 hours ago, GeordieSaint said:

 

Hopefully the NRL will have learned from some on this forum what a negative step this is and will subsequently squash any such bid from NZ and host it themselves. We don’t want another USA or France on our hands do we.

[UTK]

https://www.heraldsun.com.au/subscribe/news/1/?sourceCode=HSWEB_WRE170_a_GGL&dest=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.heraldsun.com.au%2Fsport%2Fnrl%2Faustralia-could-be-called-on-to-save-the-2025-rugby-league-world-cup-after-france-scrapped-plans-to-host-the-tournament%2Fnews-story%2Fb9e55385185e5c68edd82b4a0cfb96e6&memtype=anonymous&mode=premium&v21=dynamic-high-test-score&V21spcbehaviour=append

Possibly the most bizarre turn of events in relation to this saga - Qatar are going to bid for the WC.

Relevant part of the article here:

Qatar recently made history by hosting the football World Cup. Now the Middle Eastern powerhouse has made a multimillion-dollar bid to save rugby league’s World Cup after NRL super coach Wayne Bennett’s push for an international showpiece in France has collapsed.

Qatar has expressed interest in hosting the 2025 World Cup as the Rugby League International Federation explores a Plan B contingency after the shock withdrawal of France. RLIF delegates have been left scrambling after French organisers pulled the pin on hosting the 2025 event, saying they couldn’t fully meet financial guarantees demanded by the French government.

It is understood Qatar made $17 billion in revenue from last year’s football World Cup, despite the nation coming under fire over human rights issues relating to infrastructure and stadium development.

But rugby league is open to exploring a historic venture in the Middle East as the RLIF moves to find a swift World Cup solution. New Zealand is believed to be the favourite to replace France as host, but the RLIF will hold preliminary talks on Wednesday to assess the claims of bids from Papua New Guinea and Qatar.

“We’ve got one option from the Middle East and two are from the Pacific,” RLIF chairman Troy Grant said. “It would be very exciting for the rugby league World Cup to go to the Middle East.

“They approached us a few months ago, so there’s a lot to consider, but we are trying to take the game to new markets.

“We want to break the Australia, England, Australia, England cycle (of hosting World Cups). Taking the World Cup to new frontiers has been the plan for a while.

“We were keen on America (for the 2025 World Cup) but they aren’t ready yet for a six-week tournament to hold interest locally in rugby league.

“New Zealand would be a wonderful host, but it depends whether their government has the interest in the World Cup.

“Certainly, the Middle East could bankroll it and that’s a big component of staging a World Cup. If we were smart about the packages and we partnered well with governments and tourism, we could do it (take a World Cup to the Middle East).”The first step might be to have a smaller tournament there such as the World Nines, but the Middle East is interested and we’ll discuss it as the board.”

Grant was left stunned by the code’s international bombshell after the likes of Bennett, Roosters mentor Trent Robinson and ex-Wallabies coach Michael Cheika backed plans for a World Cup in France.

“I can’t be more disappointed,” he said. “It was my idea to go to France on the back of Wayne Bennett’s advice.

“Trent Robinson and Michael Cheika were others who provided great support to explore the World Cup in France.

“Wayne was a huge fan of the concept. he believed international football needed to grow and he saw great merit in a World Cup in France.

“He said, ‘You have to invest in France’, so I came up with the idea in 2021 to jump on the back of rugby and the Olympics and give France a triple treat of international sporting festivals. The French organisers were excited, things were going great, then there was a change of government in France and the war in Ukraine

“If there wasn’t a war in Ukraine, the World Cup would have gone ahead in France and it would have been a massive success. But we’re a victim of world events.”

Apologies in advance for the formatting.

[Sports Prophet]

7 minutes ago, UTK said:

“We’ve got one option from the Middle East and two are from the Pacific,” RLIF chairman Troy Grant said. “It would be very exciting for the rugby league World Cup to go to the Middle East.

“They approached us a few months ago, so there’s a lot to consider, but we are trying to take the game to new markets.

“We want to break the Australia, England, Australia, England cycle (of hosting World Cups). Taking the World Cup to new frontiers has been the plan for a while.

Hmmm, how’s that long held “agreement” to take “turns” in hosting the WC looking now? 

Just another piece of evidence that it was never Australia’s or the NRL’s “turn” to host the 2025 WC.

[frank]

If the WC was held in NZ it would be the most successful of recent times, the support is there.  Kiwis generally turn out  to watch big games  choose what the sport is.  The Aussie sevens were held at Eden Park a few years ago and drew a crowd of forty odd thousand. Kiwis  generally turn out for big events choose what the game is. If Govt backing could be guaranteed then it should be held here.

[Jim from Oz]

1 hour ago, UTK said:

https://www.heraldsun.com.au/subscribe/news/1/?sourceCode=HSWEB_WRE170_a_GGL&dest=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.heraldsun.com.au%2Fsport%2Fnrl%2Faustralia-could-be-called-on-to-save-the-2025-rugby-league-world-cup-after-france-scrapped-plans-to-host-the-tournament%2Fnews-story%2Fb9e55385185e5c68edd82b4a0cfb96e6&memtype=anonymous&mode=premium&v21=dynamic-high-test-score&V21spcbehaviour=append

Possibly the most bizarre turn of events in relation to this saga - Qatar are going to bid for the WC.

Relevant part of the article here:

Qatar recently made history by hosting the football World Cup. Now the Middle Eastern powerhouse has made a multimillion-dollar bid to save rugby league’s World Cup after NRL super coach Wayne Bennett’s push for an international showpiece in France has collapsed.

Qatar has expressed interest in hosting the 2025 World Cup as the Rugby League International Federation explores a Plan B contingency after the shock withdrawal of France. RLIF delegates have been left scrambling after French organisers pulled the pin on hosting the 2025 event, saying they couldn’t fully meet financial guarantees demanded by the French government.

It is understood Qatar made $17 billion in revenue from last year’s football World Cup, despite the nation coming under fire over human rights issues relating to infrastructure and stadium development.

But rugby league is open to exploring a historic venture in the Middle East as the RLIF moves to find a swift World Cup solution. New Zealand is believed to be the favourite to replace France as host, but the RLIF will hold preliminary talks on Wednesday to assess the claims of bids from Papua New Guinea and Qatar.

“We’ve got one option from the Middle East and two are from the Pacific,” RLIF chairman Troy Grant said. “It would be very exciting for the rugby league World Cup to go to the Middle East.

“They approached us a few months ago, so there’s a lot to consider, but we are trying to take the game to new markets.

“We want to break the Australia, England, Australia, England cycle (of hosting World Cups). Taking the World Cup to new frontiers has been the plan for a while.

“We were keen on America (for the 2025 World Cup) but they aren’t ready yet for a six-week tournament to hold interest locally in rugby league.

“New Zealand would be a wonderful host, but it depends whether their government has the interest in the World Cup.

“Certainly, the Middle East could bankroll it and that’s a big component of staging a World Cup. If we were smart about the packages and we partnered well with governments and tourism, we could do it (take a World Cup to the Middle East).”The first step might be to have a smaller tournament there such as the World Nines, but the Middle East is interested and we’ll discuss it as the board.”

Grant was left stunned by the code’s international bombshell after the likes of Bennett, Roosters mentor Trent Robinson and ex-Wallabies coach Michael Cheika backed plans for a World Cup in France.

“I can’t be more disappointed,” he said. “It was my idea to go to France on the back of Wayne Bennett’s advice.

“Trent Robinson and Michael Cheika were others who provided great support to explore the World Cup in France.

“Wayne was a huge fan of the concept. he believed international football needed to grow and he saw great merit in a World Cup in France.

“He said, ‘You have to invest in France’, so I came up with the idea in 2021 to jump on the back of rugby and the Olympics and give France a triple treat of international sporting festivals. The French organisers were excited, things were going great, then there was a change of government in France and the war in Ukraine

“If there wasn’t a war in Ukraine, the World Cup would have gone ahead in France and it would have been a massive success. But we’re a victim of world events.”

Apologies in advance for the formatting.

Mmmmmmm …. And how many RL fans would travel to Qatar for it??? Not me, for starters.

France? Oui

Qatar? No.

 

PS: I’m still shattered about France pulling out …

[Gomersall]

7 hours ago, Sports Prophet said:

Doesn’t matter. This is the one event where they are the governors and that one event is now on its backside and the leaders can’t even bring themselves together for an immediate emergency meeting.

Now who’s deluded? THEY HAVE NO POWER. The tail is wagging the dog. 

Edited May 17, 2023 by Gomersall

[gingerjon]

1 hour ago, UTK said:

https://www.heraldsun.com.au/subscribe/news/1/?sourceCode=HSWEB_WRE170_a_GGL&dest=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.heraldsun.com.au%2Fsport%2Fnrl%2Faustralia-could-be-called-on-to-save-the-2025-rugby-league-world-cup-after-france-scrapped-plans-to-host-the-tournament%2Fnews-story%2Fb9e55385185e5c68edd82b4a0cfb96e6&memtype=anonymous&mode=premium&v21=dynamic-high-test-score&V21spcbehaviour=append

Possibly the most bizarre turn of events in relation to this saga - Qatar are going to bid for the WC.

Relevant part of the article here:

Qatar recently made history by hosting the football World Cup. Now the Middle Eastern powerhouse has made a multimillion-dollar bid to save rugby league’s World Cup after NRL super coach Wayne Bennett’s push for an international showpiece in France has collapsed.

Qatar has expressed interest in hosting the 2025 World Cup as the Rugby League International Federation explores a Plan B contingency after the shock withdrawal of France. RLIF delegates have been left scrambling after French organisers pulled the pin on hosting the 2025 event, saying they couldn’t fully meet financial guarantees demanded by the French government.

It is understood Qatar made $17 billion in revenue from last year’s football World Cup, despite the nation coming under fire over human rights issues relating to infrastructure and stadium development.

But rugby league is open to exploring a historic venture in the Middle East as the RLIF moves to find a swift World Cup solution. New Zealand is believed to be the favourite to replace France as host, but the RLIF will hold preliminary talks on Wednesday to assess the claims of bids from Papua New Guinea and Qatar.

“We’ve got one option from the Middle East and two are from the Pacific,” RLIF chairman Troy Grant said. “It would be very exciting for the rugby league World Cup to go to the Middle East.

“They approached us a few months ago, so there’s a lot to consider, but we are trying to take the game to new markets.

“We want to break the Australia, England, Australia, England cycle (of hosting World Cups). Taking the World Cup to new frontiers has been the plan for a while.

“We were keen on America (for the 2025 World Cup) but they aren’t ready yet for a six-week tournament to hold interest locally in rugby league.

“New Zealand would be a wonderful host, but it depends whether their government has the interest in the World Cup.

“Certainly, the Middle East could bankroll it and that’s a big component of staging a World Cup. If we were smart about the packages and we partnered well with governments and tourism, we could do it (take a World Cup to the Middle East).”The first step might be to have a smaller tournament there such as the World Nines, but the Middle East is interested and we’ll discuss it as the board.”

Grant was left stunned by the code’s international bombshell after the likes of Bennett, Roosters mentor Trent Robinson and ex-Wallabies coach Michael Cheika backed plans for a World Cup in France.

“I can’t be more disappointed,” he said. “It was my idea to go to France on the back of Wayne Bennett’s advice.

“Trent Robinson and Michael Cheika were others who provided great support to explore the World Cup in France.

“Wayne was a huge fan of the concept. he believed international football needed to grow and he saw great merit in a World Cup in France.

“He said, ‘You have to invest in France’, so I came up with the idea in 2021 to jump on the back of rugby and the Olympics and give France a triple treat of international sporting festivals. The French organisers were excited, things were going great, then there was a change of government in France and the war in Ukraine

“If there wasn’t a war in Ukraine, the World Cup would have gone ahead in France and it would have been a massive success. But we’re a victim of world events.”

Apologies in advance for the formatting.

They've been left scrambling but a page back we had contingencies in place as they'd been anticipating France not being able to host?

Good to somehow blame the war in Ukraine as well.

Christ. 

[JohnM]

2 hours ago, UTK said:

https://www.heraldsun.com.au/subscribe/news/1/?sourceCode=HSWEB_WRE170_a_GGL&dest=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.heraldsun.com.au%2Fsport%2Fnrl%2Faustralia-could-be-called-on-to-save-the-2025-rugby-league-world-cup-after-france-scrapped-plans-to-host-the-tournament%2Fnews-story%2Fb9e55385185e5c68edd82b4a0cfb96e6&memtype=anonymous&mode=premium&v21=dynamic-high-test-score&V21spcbehaviour=append

Possibly the most bizarre turn of events in relation to this saga - Qatar are going to bid for the WC.

Relevant part of the article here:

Qatar recently made history by hosting the football World Cup. Now the Middle Eastern powerhouse has made a multimillion-dollar bid to save rugby league’s World Cup after NRL super coach Wayne Bennett’s push for an international showpiece in France has collapsed.

Qatar has expressed interest in hosting the 2025 World Cup as the Rugby League International Federation explores a Plan B contingency after the shock withdrawal of France. RLIF delegates have been left scrambling after French organisers pulled the pin on hosting the 2025 event, saying they couldn’t fully meet financial guarantees demanded by the French government.

It is understood Qatar made $17 billion in revenue from last year’s football World Cup, despite the nation coming under fire over human rights issues relating to infrastructure and stadium development.

But rugby league is open to exploring a historic venture in the Middle East as the RLIF moves to find a swift World Cup solution. New Zealand is believed to be the favourite to replace France as host, but the RLIF will hold preliminary talks on Wednesday to assess the claims of bids from Papua New Guinea and Qatar.

“We’ve got one option from the Middle East and two are from the Pacific,” RLIF chairman Troy Grant said. “It would be very exciting for the rugby league World Cup to go to the Middle East.

“They approached us a few months ago, so there’s a lot to consider, but we are trying to take the game to new markets.

“We want to break the Australia, England, Australia, England cycle (of hosting World Cups). Taking the World Cup to new frontiers has been the plan for a while.

“We were keen on America (for the 2025 World Cup) but they aren’t ready yet for a six-week tournament to hold interest locally in rugby league.

“New Zealand would be a wonderful host, but it depends whether their government has the interest in the World Cup.

“Certainly, the Middle East could bankroll it and that’s a big component of staging a World Cup. If we were smart about the packages and we partnered well with governments and tourism, we could do it (take a World Cup to the Middle East).”The first step might be to have a smaller tournament there such as the World Nines, but the Middle East is interested and we’ll discuss it as the board.”

Grant was left stunned by the code’s international bombshell after the likes of Bennett, Roosters mentor Trent Robinson and ex-Wallabies coach Michael Cheika backed plans for a World Cup in France.

“I can’t be more disappointed,” he said. “It was my idea to go to France on the back of Wayne Bennett’s advice.

“Trent Robinson and Michael Cheika were others who provided great support to explore the World Cup in France.

“Wayne was a huge fan of the concept. he believed international football needed to grow and he saw great merit in a World Cup in France.

“He said, ‘You have to invest in France’, so I came up with the idea in 2021 to jump on the back of rugby and the Olympics and give France a triple treat of international sporting festivals. The French organisers were excited, things were going great, then there was a change of government in France and the war in Ukraine

“If there wasn’t a war in Ukraine, the World Cup would have gone ahead in France and it would have been a massive success. But we’re a victim of world events.”

Apologies in advance for the formatting.

Good grief! That article puts an end to any desire I had to see our entire sport run by the Australians. What planet are these guys living on. Cards on the table: trying to hold the World Cup in France really was a triumph of hope over of experience. Yes, I'd certainly have gone to multiple games, but even a few thousand fans from UK and Aus etc would not have guaranteed viability.

In my view, we have to keep it simple, establish a successful, stable and sustainable competition structure in countries where the game is already fully established. Keep that for three or four cycles before venturing into risky and experimental structures and geography. That means ENGLAND and AUSTRALIA (with maybe a couple of fixtures in loyal fan areas of France and NZ.)

For 2025, we might of course be stuck with Qatar if they are going to bankroll it, but I just can't see it attracting many fans. Maybe the "approach" form Qatar was just a code misunderstanding or a mis-adressed email.

"They approached us a few months months ago." 

"If there wasn’t a war in Ukraine, the World Cup would have gone ahead in France."

Nonsense.

"We want to break the Australia, England, Australia, England cycle (of hosting World Cups"

Why? Do they want to lose money every time?

Edited May 17, 2023 by JohnM

[Henson Park Old Firm]

Let me guess, if Qatar  renegs it's  Israel's fault.

[Toby Chopra]

56 minutes ago, Jim from Oz said:

Mmmmmmm …. And how many RL fans would travel to Qatar for it??? Not me, for starters.

France? Oui

Qatar? No.

 

PS: I’m still shattered about France pulling out …

Indeed, it would be like the World Athletics Championships held there, not the World Cup - empty stadium night after night. It's a no go.

Best solution is to do it on a small as scale as possible - just in Sydney and Brisbane, and suburban grounds if necessary. 12 team men's, plus 8 team women's given success of NRLW should work.

Hold the wheelchair here again, all at the Copper Box. It'd do well. Scrap the youth unfortunately.

[Matterhorn]

I think it is a no brainer that we must give it to NZ or let them co host with either Aus/Pacific/PNG as a thankyou for making sure the NRL was kept going during COVID by keeping there team based there (The Warriors) in Australia for at least 2 years.

We talk about French Rugby League on its knees - I am sure the NZ Rugby League deserves a shot in the arm leading up to, during & post the World Cup 25 if held there.

 

[frank]

1 hour ago, Jim from Oz said:

Mmmmmmm …. And how many RL fans would travel to Qatar for it??? Not me, for starters.

France? Oui

Qatar? No.

 

PS: I’m still shattered about France pulling out …

The Aussies can't be bothered turning out even if it's in their backyard, after the last debacle.

[RP London]

2 hours ago, UTK said:

https://www.heraldsun.com.au/subscribe/news/1/?sourceCode=HSWEB_WRE170_a_GGL&dest=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.heraldsun.com.au%2Fsport%2Fnrl%2Faustralia-could-be-called-on-to-save-the-2025-rugby-league-world-cup-after-france-scrapped-plans-to-host-the-tournament%2Fnews-story%2Fb9e55385185e5c68edd82b4a0cfb96e6&memtype=anonymous&mode=premium&v21=dynamic-high-test-score&V21spcbehaviour=append

Possibly the most bizarre turn of events in relation to this saga - Qatar are going to bid for the WC.

Relevant part of the article here:

Qatar recently made history by hosting the football World Cup. Now the Middle Eastern powerhouse has made a multimillion-dollar bid to save rugby league’s World Cup after NRL super coach Wayne Bennett’s push for an international showpiece in France has collapsed.

Qatar has expressed interest in hosting the 2025 World Cup as the Rugby League International Federation explores a Plan B contingency after the shock withdrawal of France. RLIF delegates have been left scrambling after French organisers pulled the pin on hosting the 2025 event, saying they couldn’t fully meet financial guarantees demanded by the French government.

It is understood Qatar made $17 billion in revenue from last year’s football World Cup, despite the nation coming under fire over human rights issues relating to infrastructure and stadium development.

But rugby league is open to exploring a historic venture in the Middle East as the RLIF moves to find a swift World Cup solution. New Zealand is believed to be the favourite to replace France as host, but the RLIF will hold preliminary talks on Wednesday to assess the claims of bids from Papua New Guinea and Qatar.

“We’ve got one option from the Middle East and two are from the Pacific,” RLIF chairman Troy Grant said. “It would be very exciting for the rugby league World Cup to go to the Middle East.

“They approached us a few months ago, so there’s a lot to consider, but we are trying to take the game to new markets.

“We want to break the Australia, England, Australia, England cycle (of hosting World Cups). Taking the World Cup to new frontiers has been the plan for a while.

“We were keen on America (for the 2025 World Cup) but they aren’t ready yet for a six-week tournament to hold interest locally in rugby league.

“New Zealand would be a wonderful host, but it depends whether their government has the interest in the World Cup.

“Certainly, the Middle East could bankroll it and that’s a big component of staging a World Cup. If we were smart about the packages and we partnered well with governments and tourism, we could do it (take a World Cup to the Middle East).”The first step might be to have a smaller tournament there such as the World Nines, but the Middle East is interested and we’ll discuss it as the board.”

Grant was left stunned by the code’s international bombshell after the likes of Bennett, Roosters mentor Trent Robinson and ex-Wallabies coach Michael Cheika backed plans for a World Cup in France.

“I can’t be more disappointed,” he said. “It was my idea to go to France on the back of Wayne Bennett’s advice.

“Trent Robinson and Michael Cheika were others who provided great support to explore the World Cup in France.

“Wayne was a huge fan of the concept. he believed international football needed to grow and he saw great merit in a World Cup in France.

“He said, ‘You have to invest in France’, so I came up with the idea in 2021 to jump on the back of rugby and the Olympics and give France a triple treat of international sporting festivals. The French organisers were excited, things were going great, then there was a change of government in France and the war in Ukraine

“If there wasn’t a war in Ukraine, the World Cup would have gone ahead in France and it would have been a massive success. But we’re a victim of world events.”

Apologies in advance for the formatting.

I can see the IRL wanting to take the money and not worry about empty stadiums etc.. also I can see the IRL board convening quite quickly in a 5 star hotel with flights paid for!

It would definitely end the debate of the womens game having their world cup at the same time, and probably the wheelchair.. neither of those are happening any time soon in Qatar you would think!

[Anita Bath]

3 hours ago, UTK said:

https://www.heraldsun.com.au/subscribe/news/1/?sourceCode=HSWEB_WRE170_a_GGL&dest=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.heraldsun.com.au%2Fsport%2Fnrl%2Faustralia-could-be-called-on-to-save-the-2025-rugby-league-world-cup-after-france-scrapped-plans-to-host-the-tournament%2Fnews-story%2Fb9e55385185e5c68edd82b4a0cfb96e6&memtype=anonymous&mode=premium&v21=dynamic-high-test-score&V21spcbehaviour=append

Possibly the most bizarre turn of events in relation to this saga - Qatar are going to bid for the WC.

Relevant part of the article here:

Qatar recently made history by hosting the football World Cup. Now the Middle Eastern powerhouse has made a multimillion-dollar bid to save rugby league’s World Cup after NRL super coach Wayne Bennett’s push for an international showpiece in France has collapsed.

Qatar has expressed interest in hosting the 2025 World Cup as the Rugby League International Federation explores a Plan B contingency after the shock withdrawal of France. RLIF delegates have been left scrambling after French organisers pulled the pin on hosting the 2025 event, saying they couldn’t fully meet financial guarantees demanded by the French government.

It is understood Qatar made $17 billion in revenue from last year’s football World Cup, despite the nation coming under fire over human rights issues relating to infrastructure and stadium development.

But rugby league is open to exploring a historic venture in the Middle East as the RLIF moves to find a swift World Cup solution. New Zealand is believed to be the favourite to replace France as host, but the RLIF will hold preliminary talks on Wednesday to assess the claims of bids from Papua New Guinea and Qatar.

“We’ve got one option from the Middle East and two are from the Pacific,” RLIF chairman Troy Grant said. “It would be very exciting for the rugby league World Cup to go to the Middle East.

“They approached us a few months ago, so there’s a lot to consider, but we are trying to take the game to new markets.

“We want to break the Australia, England, Australia, England cycle (of hosting World Cups). Taking the World Cup to new frontiers has been the plan for a while.

“We were keen on America (for the 2025 World Cup) but they aren’t ready yet for a six-week tournament to hold interest locally in rugby league.

“New Zealand would be a wonderful host, but it depends whether their government has the interest in the World Cup.

“Certainly, the Middle East could bankroll it and that’s a big component of staging a World Cup. If we were smart about the packages and we partnered well with governments and tourism, we could do it (take a World Cup to the Middle East).”The first step might be to have a smaller tournament there such as the World Nines, but the Middle East is interested and we’ll discuss it as the board.”

Grant was left stunned by the code’s international bombshell after the likes of Bennett, Roosters mentor Trent Robinson and ex-Wallabies coach Michael Cheika backed plans for a World Cup in France.

“I can’t be more disappointed,” he said. “It was my idea to go to France on the back of Wayne Bennett’s advice.

“Trent Robinson and Michael Cheika were others who provided great support to explore the World Cup in France.

“Wayne was a huge fan of the concept. he believed international football needed to grow and he saw great merit in a World Cup in France.

“He said, ‘You have to invest in France’, so I came up with the idea in 2021 to jump on the back of rugby and the Olympics and give France a triple treat of international sporting festivals. The French organisers were excited, things were going great, then there was a change of government in France and the war in Ukraine

“If there wasn’t a war in Ukraine, the World Cup would have gone ahead in France and it would have been a massive success. But we’re a victim of world events.”

Apologies in advance for the formatting.

“Whether the NZ government has interest in it” is Australian for whether the NZ government will pour millions of taxpayers money in to it.

 

 

[Damien]

3 hours ago, Sports Prophet said:

Hmmm, how’s that long held “agreement” to take “turns” in hosting the WC looking now? 

Just another piece of evidence that it was never Australia’s or the NRL’s “turn” to host the 2025 WC.

Stop being obtuse. 

 

[crashmon]

3 hours ago, UTK said:

https://www.heraldsun.com.au/subscribe/news/1/?sourceCode=HSWEB_WRE170_a_GGL&dest=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.heraldsun.com.au%2Fsport%2Fnrl%2Faustralia-could-be-called-on-to-save-the-2025-rugby-league-world-cup-after-france-scrapped-plans-to-host-the-tournament%2Fnews-story%2Fb9e55385185e5c68edd82b4a0cfb96e6&memtype=anonymous&mode=premium&v21=dynamic-high-test-score&V21spcbehaviour=append

Possibly the most bizarre turn of events in relation to this saga - Qatar are going to bid for the WC.

Relevant part of the article here:

Qatar recently made history by hosting the football World Cup. Now the Middle Eastern powerhouse has made a multimillion-dollar bid to save rugby league’s World Cup after NRL super coach Wayne Bennett’s push for an international showpiece in France has collapsed.

Qatar has expressed interest in hosting the 2025 World Cup as the Rugby League International Federation explores a Plan B contingency after the shock withdrawal of France. RLIF delegates have been left scrambling after French organisers pulled the pin on hosting the 2025 event, saying they couldn’t fully meet financial guarantees demanded by the French government.

It is understood Qatar made $17 billion in revenue from last year’s football World Cup, despite the nation coming under fire over human rights issues relating to infrastructure and stadium development.

But rugby league is open to exploring a historic venture in the Middle East as the RLIF moves to find a swift World Cup solution. New Zealand is believed to be the favourite to replace France as host, but the RLIF will hold preliminary talks on Wednesday to assess the claims of bids from Papua New Guinea and Qatar.

“We’ve got one option from the Middle East and two are from the Pacific,” RLIF chairman Troy Grant said. “It would be very exciting for the rugby league World Cup to go to the Middle East.

“They approached us a few months ago, so there’s a lot to consider, but we are trying to take the game to new markets.

“We want to break the Australia, England, Australia, England cycle (of hosting World Cups). Taking the World Cup to new frontiers has been the plan for a while.

“We were keen on America (for the 2025 World Cup) but they aren’t ready yet for a six-week tournament to hold interest locally in rugby league.

“New Zealand would be a wonderful host, but it depends whether their government has the interest in the World Cup.

“Certainly, the Middle East could bankroll it and that’s a big component of staging a World Cup. If we were smart about the packages and we partnered well with governments and tourism, we could do it (take a World Cup to the Middle East).”The first step might be to have a smaller tournament there such as the World Nines, but the Middle East is interested and we’ll discuss it as the board.”

Grant was left stunned by the code’s international bombshell after the likes of Bennett, Roosters mentor Trent Robinson and ex-Wallabies coach Michael Cheika backed plans for a World Cup in France.

“I can’t be more disappointed,” he said. “It was my idea to go to France on the back of Wayne Bennett’s advice.

“Trent Robinson and Michael Cheika were others who provided great support to explore the World Cup in France.

“Wayne was a huge fan of the concept. he believed international football needed to grow and he saw great merit in a World Cup in France.

“He said, ‘You have to invest in France’, so I came up with the idea in 2021 to jump on the back of rugby and the Olympics and give France a triple treat of international sporting festivals. The French organisers were excited, things were going great, then there was a change of government in France and the war in Ukraine

“If there wasn’t a war in Ukraine, the World Cup would have gone ahead in France and it would have been a massive success. But we’re a victim of world events.”

Apologies in advance for the formatting.

The few fans who travel down to Broncos games from the North complain bitterly about london prices (eg 10GBP for a burger and chips).  Don't see them paying the astronomical prices in Qatar however.....

But you will find lots of South East Asian Men all of a sudden being Jamacian, Greek, Italian, Tongan etc supporters just to make it look like the games are sell-out

Edited May 17, 2023 by crashmon

[JohnM]

14 minutes ago, Anita Bath said:

“Whether the NZ government has interest in it” is Australian for whether the NZ government will pour millions of taxpayers money in to it.

 

 

Which would be no use unless tens of thousands of fans turned up at games. Empty stadiums would not be a good look.

[Damien]

29 minutes ago, RP London said:

I can see the IRL wanting to take the money and not worry about empty stadiums etc.. also I can see the IRL board convening quite quickly in a 5 star hotel with flights paid for!

It would definitely end the debate of the womens game having their world cup at the same time, and probably the wheelchair.. neither of those are happening any time soon in Qatar you would think!

If Qatar offered a big guaranteed sum, and let's face it it probably wouldn't need to be that big, then I think the powers that be would snatch their hand off. If say a World Cup was fully underwritten and a guaranteed £10 million profit given to the IRL then that is way in excess of any profit from a World Cup. Other sports have gone to Qatar and I doubt RL would be that picky. It would be convenient all round.

I know the ethical arguments and completely understand them. I'll leave that though to the sportwashing thread on the politics forum. Those aside, on a purely pragmatic level, if Qatar picked up the baton at short notice and the sport could get a tidy sum and build to 2029 then I don't think empty stadiums would matter to the IRL (and we would have a conveneient excuse for the empty stadiums we get anyway!).

Obviously this is all probably pie in the sky stuff.

Edited May 17, 2023 by Damien

[JohnM]

What's in it for Qatar? No one would go to any games.

[HawkMan]

2 minutes ago, JohnM said:

What's in it for Qatar? No one would go to any games.

That's what I wondered, for sportswashing to work the event has to have global reach,  give Qatar big kudos, but RLWC isn't that huge. The answer is probably Qatar looking for influence in Australia,  trade, business opportunities etc. 

[Damien]

3 minutes ago, JohnM said:

What's in it for Qatar? No one would go to any games.

That's irrelevant when it comes to sportswashing. Its all about image and selling the country positively and diverterting from the more negative aspects of what goes on.

[crashmon]

2 minutes ago, Damien said:

That's irrelevant when it comes to sportswashing. Its all about image and selling the country positively and diverterting from the more negative aspects of what goes on.

You never know, if Qatar are interested in RL, they might be persuaded to invest in the club game....

There is a certain club playing the in championship in London, that badly needs a new owner and new investment....  Could even rename them the Qatar Camels, keep Buck and Dusty but stich a hump on the back of the mascots suits

[JohnM]

Watch events prove me wrong, as they usually do but I feel like we're living in a dream world, some sort of parallel universe where non-Euclidean geometry collides with quantum physics to create a successful and popular outcome. Not going to happen.

[RP London]

8 minutes ago, JohnM said:

Watch events prove me wrong, as they usually do but I feel like we're living in a dream world, some sort of parallel universe where non-Euclidean geometry collides with quantum physics to create a successful and popular outcome. Not going to happen.

what was actually said was from an interview with Troy Grant when they asked him why the IRL board could not convene in person faster and it was "I've got a bad case of Catarrh" and it all went wrong from there. 

[Anita Bath]

Playing a RLWC in Qatar makes as much sense as having a super league club on the other side of the world…it will never happen, nobody is stupid enough to do that …..oh wait…..