The host for the next Rugby League World Cup in 2030 will be named before the end of this year – with Australia out of the running and Peter V’landys considering moving in a new administrative direction.
Australia, New Zealand and Papua New Guinea have been combined hosts of this autumn’s event, but a decision on who will be the next hosts is understood to not be too far away.
In fact, reports in Australia have suggested that there is an intriguing meeting of the International Rugby League looming next week which could rubber-stamp the next host within weeks.
2030 World Cup host to be named soon
The Sydney Morning Herald have reported there is a major change looming in regards to how the IRL will decide its hosts.
They will now no longer sell the rights to the tournament to host countries; instead running it themselves – with the Australian Rugby League Commission reportedly prepared to underwrite the costs of the 2030 tournament.
Interestingly, Peter V’landys sits on that board of the IRL, and with a deal between Super League and the NRL likely to be well underway by that point, it raises questions about whether or not England could be hosts again.
But as it stands, the tenders that were announced two years ago feature five nations not including England.
The five nations in the running
In July 2024, the IRL confirmed that five different nations had bid to host the men’s tournament in 2030.
New Zealand appear the frontrunners to host a standalone World Cup, having staged some Kiwis games this year. They, coupled with Papua New Guinea, will likely both have new NRL franchises by then which could edge their respective bids.
There is also a bid from the United States, who have previously tried to stage a World Cup without success. They now, however, have somewhat of a starting point for a footprint with the success of the Las Vegas games. Meanwhile, the other two bids hail from Africa.
South Africa have lodged a tender to take the men’s tournament, as have Kenya. And it appears a decision is close, with either a traditional rugby league heavyweight getting the rights, or a new venture for the game on the global stage.