The 2030 Rugby League World Cup will be held across the Pacific and the United States, with the competition set for a major change in both scheduling and participants.

International Rugby League Chairman Troy Grant held a press conference in Australia on Monday morning, local time, to confirm the host nation of the next tournament. The news comes shortly after the 2026 final line-up was confirmed, with Australia and New Zealand set to meet at Suncorp Stadium at the weekend.

Whilst host cities are still to be ratified, the 2030 competition will again see the men’s and women’s tournaments held alongside each other. The wheelchair game, whilst expected to be held in France, will also take place at the same time.

The men’s competition will move from 10 teams to 12, hopefully making for a more straightforward pool format. The women’s competition, meanwhile, will increase to 10 teams.

Whilst the qualifying process for the women’s tournament is yet to be revealed, the top eight ranked men’s teams will automatically gain a spot in the draw, whilst the final four teams will need to qualify.

A ‘World Series’ will take place in 2029. It is open to all countries, with the full qualification process set to be announced in due course.

The NRL and ARLC will again deliver the 2030 competition, with the Australian governing body taking the ‘Magic Round’ concept to the world stage. Group stage games will take place at one stadium over three days, with every pool game that week, in both the men’s and women’s, held at the same venue.

France to take on Southern Hemisphere as 2027 tour revealed

As well as confirming details of the next World Cup, Grant also announced that France will embark on a tour down under in 2027.

The European nation will take on a Pacific Tour at the end of next season, and will be supported by the French government, sponsors and the NRL.

Announcements will come in 2027 regarding their opponents, but the decision to bring France down under is a nod to the investment that the Southern Hemisphere is putting into the nation.

The NRL are set to make some significant investments into the French game, with a reported figure of up to £10 million set to boost the game from the bottom up.

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