Rugby League World Cup

Rugby League World Cup

Upcoming tournament 2026 Men's Rugby League World Cup
Sport	Rugby league
Instituted	1954; 70 years ago (1954)
Number of teams	16 (finals)[a]
Region	International (IRL)
Holders	Australia (12th title)
Most titles	Australia (12 titles)
Website	rlwc2021.com
Related competition	Women's World Cup Wheelchair World Cup World Cup 9s

The Rugby League World Cup is an international rugby league tournament contested by the top national men's representative teams. The tournament is administered by the International Rugby League and was first held in France in 1954, which was the first World Cup held for any form of rugby football.^[1]

The idea of a rugby league World Cup tournament was first mooted in the 1930s with the French proposal to hold a tournament in 1931, and again in 1951.^[2] The tournament's structure, frequency, and size has varied significantly throughout its history.^[3] The winners are awarded the Paul Barrière Trophy, named after Paul Barrière, the French Rugby League President of the 1940s and 1950s. Three nations have won the tournament; Australia twelve times, Great Britain three times, and New Zealand once. Australia has been in the final of every World Cup, except the first in 1954, when they came third, which was considered to be a complete upset with the bookmakers at the time having Australia as strong favourites.

The latest World Cup was held in England in 2022 after being delayed by a year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

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