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Rugby league’s expansion to the United States is continuing to gather speed, with Hawaii and Utah emerging as the front-runners to host to the 2030 Rugby League World Cup.
This would be the first time the competition would be held on US soil, and marks a continuation of the exploration into the market following the success of the annual Las Vegas event. England have also previously played a Test match in the USA, beating New Zealand 36-18 in Denver back in 2018.
These reports follow viral social media videos of Tongan and Samoan supporters in the state of Utah ahead of their pool stage clash last weekend.
While official confirmation of the winning bid will be announced on Monday, Code Sports reports that the American bid is likely to come out on top.
“So Utah and Hawaii, you’re probably asking why. Well, number one, the game is on a mission to expand and promote this game globally,” Code reporter David Riccio told Channel 7 during the broadcast of the semi-final between New Zealand and Tonga.
“Secondly, what we’ve seen in the last week on the back of Tonga v Samoa at CommBank Stadium is this wave of emotion that has been captured around the world. Notably in Hawaii and Utah, where there is such a huge Tongan and Samoan population.”
They were also not the only Pacific-based bidder, either, with New Zealand and Papua New Guinea declaring an interest in standalone hosting rights too. The two nations also hosted some Tests during the ongoing 2026 edition as well.
Elsewhere, South Africa and Kenya were also in the running to host the competition after launching official bids, in a move that would expand rugby league across the globe.
Talk of the 2030 edition comes amid the backdrop of the success of the currently ongoing World Cup in Australia, New Zealand and PNG, with TV ratings are at an all-time high for the competition and stadiums selling out. Notably, the showpiece final at Suncorp Stadium has already sold out, as has tomorrow’s semi-final between Australia and Samoa.
The winner of that fixture will then meet New Zealand in the final, with the Kiwis bagging a 34-10 win over Tonga earlier today.
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