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96-1280: The last full Kangaroo Tour was in 1994, although shortened Kangaroo Tours took place in 2001 and again in 2003. Since 1954, the Kangaroos have also made a number of overseas tours for multi-team tournaments such as the World Cup , Tri-Nations and Four Nations , however these are not classed as Kangaroo tours. Northern Union 22–22 Australia Northern Union 15–5 Australia Northern Union 6–5 Australia Played: 45 Won: 17 Drew: 6 Lost: 22 Ashes: Great Britain 2–0 Played: 35 Won: 28 Drew: 2 Lost: 5 Ashes: Australasia 2–0 Played: 36 Won: 27 Drew: 0 Lost: 9 Ashes: Great Britain 2–1 Played: 35 Won: 24 Drew: 2 Lost: 7 Ashes: Great Britain 2–1 Played: 37 Won: 27 Drew: 0 Lost: 10 Ashes: Great Britain 3–0 Played: 35 Won: 22 Drew: 1 Lost: 12 Ashes: Great Britain 2–1 Played: 37 Won: 24 Drew: 0 Lost: 13 Ashes: Great Britain 3–0 Played: 40 Won: 33 Drew: 1 Lost: 6 Ashes: Great Britain 2–1 A record eleven Queenslanders were selected for this tour. Played: 28 Won: 18 Drew: 1 Lost: 9 Ashes: Great Britain 2–1 Played: 24 Won: 15 Drew: 0 Lost: 9 Ashes: Great Britain 2–1 The 1963 Kangaroos thus became

192-538: A New Zealand Maori representative team, the only time this team has taken part, as well as debuts for the Cook Islands, Ireland, Russia, and Scotland. Australia won the tournament by beating New Zealand 40–12 in the final at Old Trafford , Manchester . In the same year, the first Women's Rugby League World Cup was held, with New Zealand defeating Great Britain in the final. Numerous issues, including poor organization and blown-out scorelines, meant that this tournament

288-468: A Rugby League World Cup record (and a record for any rugby league international match) until beaten by the 74,468 crowd which attended the 2013 World Cup final at Old Trafford . The fifth nation to compete in these two tournaments was Papua New Guinea, where rugby league is the national, and most popular, sport. In 1995 , the competition was held in England and Wales. It was again restructured, returning to

384-533: A 23–6 win in the third test at Headingley . However, the Australians were defeated by the French team in both tests played at the end of the 1978 tour. This was the last defeat of the Kangaroos in a series until 2005. The 1980s was the decade in which Australia began to truly dominate world rugby league. Along with the emergence of State of Origin football came a new crop of superstar players who led Australia throughout

480-649: A British team. By 1907, Sydney club rugby games were attracting up to 20,000 people, with all profits going to the Southern Rugby Football Union , as the sport was officially an amateur one. This caused discontent among players, and in 1908 the New South Wales Rugby Football League and Queensland Rugby League were formed. An Australian national rugby league team was first formed during the first season of rugby league in Australia ,

576-633: A Kangaroo Tour since Tom Gorman in 1929/30. Australia crashed to a defeat on Tuesday 21 July 1987, when the Kangaroo dominance of the international game suffered a setback. New Zealand were their opponents in a match at Lang Park in Brisbane , which had been arranged to fill the gap created by the non-appearance of France. New Zealand won the game 13–6. The next four internationals between Australia and New Zealand were all staged in New Zealand, and all were won by

672-523: A bad start for the Kangaroos when Great Britain shocked Australia to win the first test 19–12 at Wembley Stadium in front of a new record home crowd of 54,567. The second test at Old Trafford in Manchester was a tight, thrilling affair that saw two of the most famous tries scored in test match football. Debutante 5/8 Cliff Lyons second half try came after the Kangaroos kept the ball alive through 13 sets of hands before winger Andrew Ettingshausen raced down

768-561: A cold night in Parkes with Mal Meninga taking over the captaincy from Wally Lewis who was unavailable with a broken arm. They then played a single test against New Zealand in Wellington , winning 24–6. With Wally Lewis controversially ruled unfit for the 1990 Kangaroo tour , his Queensland teammate Mal Meninga, making his 3rd Kangaroo Tour, retained the Australian captaincy. The Ashes got off to

864-463: A desire to see a total of one million fans attend games. This tournament saw the number of teams increased to 16 once again, with Greece and Jamaica debuting in the competition. In 2021, the women's and wheelchair competitions were given equal prominence with the men's tournament, as a result all three competition were run simultaneously for the first time. Australia again won the competition, beating final debutants Samoa 30–10. The 2021 tournament

960-513: A good working relationship with Wally Lewis and the players. The now harmonious Australians swept New Zealand 3–0 in a mid-season test series played in Australia. During the 1986 Kangaroo tour of Great Britain and France a then record northern hemisphere crowd of 50,383 attended the first test of the Ashes series at Old Trafford with the Walle Lewis led Australians winning 38–16. On 16 December 1986

1056-591: A late Laurie Daley field goal. Daley had captained Australia for the first time in the match following a two-game suspension to Mal Meninga. The Kangaroos then won the second test 16–8 at the very wet Palmerston North Showgrounds before wrapping up the series with a 16–4 win at Lang Park in Brisbane. On 4 July 1994, Australia defeated France 58–0 at the Parramatta Stadium in Sydney, their only test on home soil for

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1152-468: A score of 28–22 to top the group, the first time a team from outside the top 3 had beaten a top 3 nation in over two decades. New Zealand went on to play Fiji in the quarter-finals and lost once again with a score of just 4–2, knocking New Zealand out in the quarter-finals, the first time a tier 1 nation had exited the tournament at this early stage. Tonga played England in the semi-finals and while conceding 20 unanswered points, they would score 3 tries in just

1248-479: A tour match against a New Zealand XIII at Huntly . Australia lost the 1972 World Cup Final to Great Britain in controversial circumstances. Australian captain Graeme Langlands was denied what seemed a fair try by being ruled offside by the French referee after catching a kick put up by halfback Dennis Ward . Television footage of the try showed Langlands was approximately a metre behind Ward when he kicked

1344-412: A tournament was in 2000 when 26 stadiums were used; the stadium capacity was the highest ever at 704,400. However, the occupancy was also the lowest ever at just 37.46%. The largest stadium in terms of capacity ever used was Wembley Stadium , London with a seating capacity of 90,000; the stadium was used in the 2013 tournament as the venue for the semi-final double-header. The smallest stadium ever used

1440-405: A varied range of formats throughout its history as the number of teams participating has increased. The current format has been in use since the 2021 tournament, in addition to the 2000 tournament. This format features 16 teams split into four groups of four playing a single round robin. Each team is awarded two points for a win and one point for a draw. The top two teams from each group qualify for

1536-675: 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 . 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. The tournament's structure, frequency, and size has varied significantly throughout its history. The winners are awarded

1632-473: Is the fourth oldest national side after England , New Zealand and Wales . The team was first assembled in 1908 for a tour of Great Britain . The majority of the Kangaroos' games since then have been played against Great Britain and New Zealand. In the first half of the 20th century, Australia's international competition came from alternating tours to Great Britain and New Zealand. Australia played host to these teams in non-tour years. Great Britain dominated in

1728-479: The 1908 NSWRFL Premiership season. The team, which was made of players from the NSWRFL with a few Queensland rugby rebels added, first played against the "professional All Blacks" on the return leg of their tour of Australia and Great Britain . Later that year, the Australian team arranged to go on a tour of its own. The first Kangaroos arrived in England on 27 September 1908, and played their first-ever test against

1824-483: The 1957 World Cup . For the 1959–60 Kangaroo tour of Great Britain, the home nation retained the Ashes by winning the Test series 2–1 by the following results. This was the last British Ashes win on home soil. For the 1960 World Cup no final was held. Still, the last game, which was between the previously undefeated Great Britain and Australia sides, made it the tournament decider. Great Britain won 10–3. Harry Bath

1920-458: The 1978 Kangaroo tour , Great Britain defeated Australia in the second test at Bradford, 18–14, before a crowd of 26,447. It took ten years, and fifteen consecutive test defeats before Britain could defeat the Kangaroos again, starting with Australia's 3–0 whitewash of the Lions during their 1979 Australasian tour. The Kangaroos had already won the first test 15–9 at Wigan and wrapped up the series with

2016-638: The 1992 Great Britain Lions tour of Australasia , the British lost the first test 22–6 in Sydney before stunning the Australians when they easily won the 2nd Ashes test 33–10 at Princes Park in Melbourne, but lost the 3rd test 16–10 in Brisbane. The 1992 Rugby League World Cup final at Wembley Stadium set a then international attendance record for a rugby league international of 73,631. The Bob Fulton coached, Mal Meninga captained Australians defeat Great Britain 10–6 to win their 7th Rugby League World Cup title. The WCF

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2112-671: The Australian Rugby League Commission , the Kangaroos are ranked first in the IRL Men's World Rankings . The team is the most successful in Rugby League World Cup history, having won the competition 12 times, and contested 15 of the 16 finals, only failing to reach the final in the 1954 inaugural tournament . Only five nations (along with NZ Maori ) have beaten Australia in test matches, and Australia has an overall win percentage of 69%. Dating back to 1908, Australia

2208-575: The Herb Steinohrt led Australians 8–6. On the 1933–34 tour New South Wales winger Dave Brown played in 32 matches, including all 3 Tests, scoring 285 points, at the time the greatest number ever attained by an Australian player on tour. An exhibition match between Australia and Great Britain at Paris' Stade Pershing in December 1933 inspired the beginnings of rugby league in France . Albert Johnston

2304-670: The Northern Union in December in London. It finished at 22 in front of a crowd of 2,000. The second test in Newcastle in January 1909 attracted a crowd of 22,000, and the Northern Union won 15–5. The third test was played at Villa Park , Birmingham, the Northern Union winning again 6–5 before a crowd of 9,000. The Australians suggested that the series be named 'The Ashes' after the cricket series of

2400-592: 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 (considered to be a complete upset at the time, with bookmakers having Australia as strong favourites). The latest World Cup

2496-733: The Trans-Tasman Test series played in Australia. As they were for the World Cup, only ARL loyal players were selected for Australia which saw several players, including Steve Menzies , Mark Coyne , Terry Hill , Gary Larson , Trevor Gillmeister and Jason Smith make their test debuts during the New Zealand series. Despite having what many described as a second string side without players such as Laurie Daley, Allan Langer , Andrew Ettingshausen , Brett Mullins , Glenn Lazarus , Bradley Clyde , Ian Roberts , Ricky Stuart and Steve Walters , Bob Fulton's Kangaroos won their 8th World Cup (and 5th in

2592-468: The 1928 series in Australia and New Zealand by two tests to one. They were presented with the Ashes Trophy by the Australians, which the two countries have competed for ever since. The 1929–30 Kangaroo tour of Great Britain was the fourth Kangaroo tour, and took the Australian team all around England and also into Wales. The tour also featured the ninth Ashes series which comprised four Test matches and

2688-422: The 1968 World Cup but at the time tests and World Cup games were classed differently). Harry Bath again coached Australia to victory in the 1970 World Cup final in a brutal game that became known as the "Battle of Headingley". Bath also coached the team on a tour of New Zealand in 1971. On that tour Geoff Starling became the youngest player to ever represent Australia. He was 18 years and 181 days old when playing

2784-407: The 1975 tournament and so Australia won by virtue of topping the group standings. As Australia had not beaten England in that tournament a final challenge match was hastily arranged which Australia would win 25–0. In 1977, Great Britain competed again as a single entity. Although the final between Australia and Great Britain was a closely fought affair, public interest in the tournament waned due to

2880-515: The 1980s. Players such as Peter Sterling , Mal Meninga , Wayne Pearce , Brett Kenny , Eric Grothe and Wally Lewis came to prominence on the 1982 Kangaroo tour of Great Britain and France . Australia's performance was taken into a new dimension by the tourists, also known as ' the Invincibles ', when they became the first team to win every game of the tour (fifteen games) including the first test by 40–4 at Hull in front of 26,771 spectators. After

2976-581: The 20 man squad after Queensland's second straight 3-0 State of Origin series win over New South Wales. Don Furner had retired from coaching after the 1988 World Cup final with Manly-Warringah 1987 Sydney Rugby League premiership winning coach and 1978 Kangaroo tour captain Bob Fulton taking over from 1989. Fulton's first series in charge of the Australian team saw them sweep New Zealand 3–0 during their 1989 tour. The Bob Fulton coached Kangaroos played two mid-season tests in 1990. They defeated France 34–2 on

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3072-564: The 2000 World Cup was played across the UK as well as some games in Ireland and France. France hosted the first World Cup in 1954 and again in 1972 as well as hosting games at the 2000 and 2013 World Cups. Despite the World Cup mainly being hosted by England, Australia, France and New Zealand, countries such as UAE , South Africa and the United States and Canada have applied to host the tournament in

3168-481: The Ashes that had been lost in 1920. They did not lose again until 1950. The Australian national team first wore green and gold in a hooped design on Saturday, 23 June 1928, when they met Great Britain in the first Test at the Brisbane Exhibition Ground . Britain led 10-2 after 25 minutes, 13-7 at half time, and, after a nervous second half, eventually claimed the Test 15–12. The England team won both

3264-663: The Australian team after Frank Stanton had stood down following the Kangaroo Tour. Although Australia won the first test against New Zealand at Carlaw Park in Auckland , the Kiwis shocked by winning the return match 19–12 at Lang Park in Brisbane . When the Lions toured in 1984, The Kangaroos again swept The Ashes series 3–0 under new team captain Wally Lewis, the first Queenslander to captain Australia since Arthur Beetson in 1974. Beetson

3360-412: The Kangaroos set a new record for largest-ever winning margin in a Test match at 52–0 against France . In their two Tests against France, the Australians ran in 96 points and conceded just a single penalty goal. After suffering such heavy losses, France decided to call off their proposed 1987 tour of Australia. This became the second consecutive tour of Europe in which Australia had won all their games. By

3456-465: The Kangaroos. During the 1988 Great Britain Lions tour the Ashes were successfully retained by Australia by winning the first two Tests, however Great Britain won the third test 26–12 at the Sydney Football Stadium , ending a 15-game winning streak between the two teams that stretched back to the third Ashes test of 1978. Later that month, Australia's 62-point win over Papua New Guinea in

3552-463: The NSW country town of Wagga Wagga set a new record for largest winning margin in international rugby league. Australian dual international winger Michael O'Connor also set a new record for most points scored by an individual in international rugby league (30 points – 4 tries, 7 goals). Also in 1988, as part of the bicentenary celebrations , Australia played a one-off test match against Rest Of The World at

3648-496: The Sydney Football Stadium, winning the one-off test 22–10. The 1985–1988 Rugby League World Cup culminated in the World Cup final against New Zealand at Auckland's Eden Park ground (the home of NZ rugby union). Australia won a brutal World Cup final 25–12 in front of 47,363. Captain Wally Lewis broke his arm during the game. In 1989 the Kangaroos toured New Zealand , taking a record-breaking twelve Queenslanders in

3744-613: The allegations. After the second test win Fearnley made 4 changes to the test team for the third and final test at Carlaw Park with all four players were omitted being Queenslanders. The changes proved disastrous and NZ ran out easy 18–0 winners. Following the tour, the Australian Rugby League decided that from then on the Kangaroos coach could not also double as the incumbent coach of either NSW or Qld. Former Kangaroo Don Furner became Australian coach in 1986 and immediately formed

3840-476: The ball. The French referee Georges Jameau's alleged reason for not awarding the try was that he did not believe anyone could have scored it from an onside position. The World Cup final was tied at 10–10 after full-time and was still locked after extra time. Great Britain were awarded the victory due to a higher points table placing after the pool rounds of the competition. The Final was also highlighted by an 80-metre try to Lions captain, winger Clive Sullivan . On

3936-443: The cities with the next highest number with 3 each. Notes; In total, 21 teams have competed at the World Cup. Of these, only three have won the World Cup, with Australia being by far the most successful with 12 titles. Great Britain has won three titles, however since 1995 have competed separately as England, Wales, Scotland and Ireland. New Zealand became only the third team to win the World Cup in 2008. England, France and Samoa are

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4032-602: The concept. At a meeting in Blackpool , England in 1953, the International Board accepted Paul Barrière's proposal that France should be the nation to host the first tournament to be officially known as the "Rugby World Cup". In addition to the hosts, the tournament featured teams from Britain, Australia and New Zealand. The 1954 Rugby League World Cup was won by Great Britain who defeated France in Paris on 13 November to claim

4128-425: The continuing tinkering with the format and it was not held again until the mid-1980s. From 1985 to 1988, each nation played each other a number of times on a home and away basis with a number of these games also being considered part of various international tours that took place during the years in which these world cups were being played. At the end of that period, Australia met New Zealand at Eden Park . The match

4224-511: The country, and rugby quickly became the dominant winter sport for Sydney. In 1888, an English team visited Australasia , playing rugby rules in Queensland, New South Wales and New Zealand, and Australian rules football in Victoria and South Australia. In 1899, an Australian team was formed using players from Queensland and New South Wales for the first time. They played a series of Tests against

4320-519: The early World Cups being contested between Australia, England, France and New Zealand and the fact rugby league is most popular in these regions they have regularly hosted the World Cup between themselves. World Cups in 1985–88 and 1989–92 were all jointly hosted by the four founding nations. New Zealand has never solely hosted a World Cup but they have co-hosted with Australia on three occasions with 2017 also jointly co-hosted with Papua New Guinea. England have co-hosted once with Wales in 2013 although

4416-485: The early years, and Australia did not win a Test against the Lions until 11 November 1911 under captain Chris McKivat . Australia did not win a series at home against Great Britain until 1920 or abroad until 1958. Since 1908, the team has been nicknamed the Kangaroos . Initially only used when touring Great Britain and later France , this has been the official nickname of the team since 7 July 1994. In 1997 Australia

4512-464: The end of the tour, Terry Lamb had become the first player to appear in every match on a Kangaroo Tour. For this tour Wally Lewis, Greg Dowling , Bob Lindner , Gene Miles ( Wynnum Manly ) and Bryan Neibling ( Redcliffe ) became the last players selected to tour from the Brisbane Rugby League competition. By being named as tour captain, Wally Lewis became the first Queenslander to captain

4608-399: The extremely poor showing during their 1979 Australasian tour, the Kangaroos rammed home just how far behind British football had fallen at Boothferry Park . The score was only 10–4 at half time, but after the break Australia's superior fitness showed and ran in six unanswered tries to leave the crowd and British football stunned. In 1983, Arthur Beetson became the first Aboriginal to coach

4704-564: The final, a knockout stage was added, with quarter and semi-finals. Due to the Super League war , players aligned with the Super League competition were not selected by the ARL to represent Australia, which meant the absence of many star players. The tournament, which was also held to celebrate the centenary of the sport, saw over 250,000 people attending the group stages and over 66,000 people attending

4800-509: The final, in which Australia defeated England 16–8. Intended for 1998, the next World Cup was delayed for two years due to the Super League war and the subsequent re-structuring of rugby league's international governing bodies meant that the proposed 1998 World Cup was postponed. In 2000 , the World Cup was held in the United Kingdom, Ireland, and France, and expanded the field further, with sixteen teams entering. This tournament included

4896-402: The first Australian only side to win the Ashes on British soil. Played: 36 Won: 28 Drew: 1 Lost: 7 Ashes: Australia 2–1 Played: 27 Won: 16 Drew: 2 Lost: 9 Ashes: Australia 2–1 Played: 19 Won: 17 Drew: 0 Lost: 2 Ashes: Australia 2–1 Played: 22 Won: 16 Drew: 0 Lost: 6 Ashes: Australia 2–1 Played: 22 Won: 22 Drew: 0 Lost: 0 Ashes: Australia 3–0 The 1982 Kangaroos became

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4992-1492: The first team to go through Great Britain and France undefeated earning them the nickname The Invincibles . Played: 20 Won: 20 Drew: 0 Lost: 0 Ashes: Australia 3–0 Emulating the 1982 Kangaroo tour, the 1986 Kangaroos went through Great Britain and France undefeated earning them the nickname The Unbeatables . Played: 18 Won: 17 Drew: 0 Lost: 1 Ashes: Australia 2–1 Played: 18 Won: 17 Drew: 0 Lost: 1 Ashes: Australia 2–1 Played: 3 Won: 2 Drew: 0 Lost: 1 Ashes: Australia 2–1 Played: 6 Won: 6 Drew: 0 Lost: 0 Ashes: Australia 3–0 Played: 9 Won: 8 Drew: 0 Lost: 1 Trans-Tasman series: Australia 3–1 Played: 6 Won: 5 Drew: 0 Lost: 1 Trans-Tasman series: Australia 2–1 Played: 10 Won: 9 Drew: 0 Lost: 1 Trans-Tasman series: Draw 1–1 Played: 9 Won: 7 Drew: 0 Lost: 2 Trans-Tasman series: New Zealand 2–1 Played: 9 Won: 7 Drew: 0 Lost: 2 Trans-Tasman series: Draw 1–1 Played: 8 Won: 7 Drew: 0 Lost: 1 Trans-Tasman series: Draw 1–1 Played: 6 Won: 4 Drew: 0 Lost: 2 Trans-Tasman series: Draw 1–1 Played: 3 Won: 1 Drew: 0 Lost: 2 Trans-Tasman series: New Zealand 1–0 Played: 7 Won: 5 Drew: 1 Lost: 1 Trans-Tasman series: Australia 2–0 Played: 6 Won: 5 Drew: 0 Lost: 1 Trans-Tasman series: Australia 2–1 Played: 6 Won: 5 Drew: 0 Lost: 1 Trans-Tasman series: Australia 3–0 Played: 5 Won: 5 Drew: 0 Lost: 0 Test series: Australia 2–0 Rugby League World Cup The Rugby League World Cup

5088-480: The first test 24–8 in Melbourne in front of 26,900 fans, however a new look Australian side came back to win the second test 44–0 in Sydney and the third test 40–12 in Brisbane. At the end of the 1991 NSWRL season , the Kangaroos embarked on their first (and as of 2017 only) tour of Papua New Guinea , winning all five games on tour including easily both tests against the Papua New Guinea Kumuls. During

5184-442: The first test in Sydney against Australia 27–20 in front of 42,000. They then won the second test in Brisbane 22–17. In Auckland , on 30 July, they defeated New Zealand 52–20. The 1910 Great Britain Lions tour of Australia and New Zealand was the first-ever, and Australia were beaten by the Ashes in two tests, faring slightly better than " Australasia " with two Kiwis added to their squad. The 1911–12 Kangaroo tour of Great Britain

5280-412: The four International Rugby League confederation Asia-Pacific, Americas, Europe, and Middle East-Africa. Because of a changeing number of teams making the finals and entering the qualifiers, and the unpredictability of the geographic spread of teams automatically qualifying, the format of the qualification tournament has changed with each edition of the tournament. The Rugby League World Cup has followed

5376-493: The inclusion of the South African team . However, after an unsuccessful tour of Australia, the French withdrew, effectively postponing the tournament until 1968, when Australia and New Zealand hosted and the World Cup final made a return. The World Cup found more success in the 70s with four tournaments being played. The first, the 1972 World Cup where the final was contested between Great Britain and Australia ended 10–10, and

5472-451: The knockout stage. The eight teams in the quarter-finals play each other with the four winners progressing to the semi-finals before the World Cup final. If the teams are level after 80 minutes extra time will be played and if the two teams are still level after extra time, a golden point will be played. This will be temporary altered for the 2026 tournament due to its late rescheduling, the exact format to be used remains unknown. Due to

5568-491: The last seven minutes to pull the score back to 20–18, eventually losing by this close margin. The final was contested between Australia and England at Lang Park , Brisbane and Australia won by just 6–0, the lowest score in world cup final history. England were chosen to host the 2021 tournament which was postponed to 2022 due to Australia and New Zealand withdrawing due to the COVID-19 pandemic . with organisers expressing

5664-550: The name 'Kangaroos' for the July test against France, since then the team has been officially known by this name. The 1994 Kangaroo tour was also the first (and only) time that the traditional Australian test kit was only worn during test matches. For the tour games, including the friendly against Wales in Cardiff (the first time Australia had played Wales in 12 years), the Kangaroos wore jumpers that had increasing thickness gold hoops underneath

5760-426: The next World Cup in 1960, this time held in England. It would be the second time Great Britain won the competition. Despite a home nation victory the World Cup suffered from poor crowds due to the live broadcast of games for the first time. After a disappointing attendances in 1960, the World Cup would not be played for another eight years. The competition had been scheduled to be held in France in 1965, this time with

5856-471: The only teams to have played in the final and not won. Wales' best result was third under the old format and have made the semi-finals twice while Fiji have appeared in three while Tonga have made the semi-finals just once. Papua New Guinea achieved fourth place under the old format and have made it to three quarter-finals. Four other teams; Ireland, Lebanon, Scotland and the USA have all made the quarter-finals bringing

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5952-664: The past. NB : As Great Britain was the IRL nation until 1995, the United Kingdom is used to refer to host nations before this time regardless of the number of home nations which actually hosted the tournament. In total, 81 stadiums have hosted world cup games over the 14 tournaments. Headingley Stadium in Leeds has hosted the tournament the most times, having had games in 7 world cups with Central Park , Wigan and Lang Park , Brisbane having hosted 6 tournaments. 52 stadiums have hosted matches in just 1 tournament. The most stadiums used in

6048-440: The powerful French team inspired by their freakish goal kicking fullback Puig Aubert . The 1954 Rugby League World Cup was the first tournament held in either rugby code. Australia failed to reach the final. For the 1956–57 Kangaroo tour a record eleven Queenslanders were selected in the touring squad. Great Britain defeated Australia 19–0 at Station Road , Swinton , to take the Ashes series 2–1. Australia hosted and won

6144-459: The record international rugby league attendance at 74,468. 2017 Rugby League World Cup taking place in Australia, New Zealand and for the first time in Papua New Guinea. While Australia would claim the title once again and for an eleventh time, the tournament was considered highly successful in terms of competitiveness. The tournament would see Tonga beat New Zealand in the group stages with

6240-598: The same name. In 1909, when the new " Northern Union " code was still in its infancy in Australia, a match between the Kangaroos and the Wallabies was played before a crowd of around 20,000, with the Rugby League side winning 29–26. The first British tour of the Southern Hemisphere began on 4 June 1910, when the Northern Union played New South Wales in front of 33,000 spectators in Sydney, losing 28–14. But they won

6336-724: The second Test at Carlaw Park , Auckland . The Test was a 20,000 sell-out, with all tickets accounted for weeks before the match. The Kiwis dominated long periods of the game but ninety seconds from time the Kiwis lost possession close to half way. John Ribot scored a try and Australia won 10–6. The tour ended in acrimony as tensions between coach Fearley and the Qld players, led by team captain Wally Lewis, reached boiling point with Lewis publicly stating that he had caught Fearnley and team vice-captain Wayne Pearce going over team selections in Fearnley's hotel room. However, both Fearnley and Pearce denied

6432-490: The series 2–1 in Australia. Out of 24 games played Great Britain won 22, drew one and lost one – making them the most successful British tourists so far. The 1970 Lions contained a galaxy of stars including captain Frank Myler , Roger Millward , Cliff Watson and Mal Reilly . Future Kangaroo Tour captain and later coach Bob Fulton made his test debut in the 1970 Ashes series (Fulton had actually played 3 games for Australia in

6528-563: The series in the famous decider, the "Rorke's Drift Test". Australia also went on a tour of New Zealand in 1919. The 1920 Great Britain Lions tour saw Australia win the Ashes for the first time on home soil. Crowds were massive, including nearly 70,000 at the first Tour match versus Sydney. The 1921–22 Kangaroo tour of Great Britain also included a New Zealander and was ostensibly an Australasian side . In January 1922, an "England" side defeated Australia 6–0 at The Willows , Salford , to win back

6624-545: The third Australian (after Ken Irvine in 1962 and 1963–64, and Sam Backo in 1988) to score a try in each test of an Ashes series. Australia faced New Zealand in a three-game mid-season Test series in 1991. The first test, played at the Olympic Park Stadium in Melbourne (the first rugby league test played in Australia outside of NSW or Qld) saw the Kiwis again defeat Australia after a successful Kangaroo tour. NZ won

6720-461: The third test at Headingley, legendary winger Ken Irvine became the first Australian player to score a try in each test of an Ashes series. The Kangaroos have not lost a series in Britain since. Harry Bath coached the national side to World Cup glory in the 1968 World Cup . He also coached the team on a tour of New Zealand in 1969. The last time that Great Britain won the Ashes was in 1970. They won

6816-579: The title was awarded to Great Britain by virtue of their superior record in the qualifiers. Great Britain were captained by Welshman Clive Sullivan who was the first black player to captain any British national sports team. The final at the Stade de Gerland in Lyon witnessed what is (as of 2021) the last British team to win the Rugby League World Cup. In 1975, the competition underwent a radical overhaul with

6912-432: The title. Following the success of the maiden World Cup three years later another tournament was held in Australia, marking 50 years of rugby league in the country. Unlike the previous tournament, teams played each other in a league format. It was then decided that the team that finished first in the league would be declared the winner. Australia proved victorious on their home ground. Another three years would pass until

7008-495: The total amount of teams to reach the knockout stage to 14. 1 (2021) 3 (1975, 1995, 2000) 3 (2008, 2013, 2017) 1 (1988) 1 (2017) Top 10 match attendances. Australia national rugby league team The Australian national rugby league team , the Kangaroos , have represented Australia in senior men's rugby league football competitions since the establishment of the game in Australia in 1908. Administered by

7104-474: The tournament and New Zealand were crowned champions for the first time by beating the host nation at Lang Park , Brisbane . The tournament was once again seen as a success with a 91% average attendance increase on the previous competition. New Zealand became only the third team to win the world cup and the first other than Australia since 1972. 2013 saw England and Wales host the tournament and expanded to 14 teams. The tournament, originally scheduled for 2012,

7200-401: The tournament being held across multiple confederations. Great Britain was split into England and Wales due to Wales wanting to showcase the high level of talent they had on offer that year (no Scottish or Irish players made the original Great Britain squad). This resulted in the tournament increasing from four teams to five for the first time. There was not a final held to decide the champions of

7296-478: The tournament in 2025, however on 15 May 2023 France pulled out of hosting the tournament after a newly elected French government withdrew financial support. A day later, New Zealand announced they were considering a bid, but would possibly require a delay to 2026. On 3 August, the IRL announced that the tournament would be postponed to 2026 and held in the southern hemisphere with only 10 teams taking part. It

7392-413: The traditional "host / co-host" format, and intended (like in 1954) to be a triennial competition. The tournament expanded to ten teams with Fiji, Samoa, South Africa, and Tonga making their world cup deputes. Great Britain had also split permanently into England, Scotland, Wales, and Ireland, although only England and Wales qualified. Unlike previous tournaments where the top two teams in the table played in

7488-415: The twin gold chevrons. The Australian team that contested and won the 1995 Rugby League World Cup consisted only of players from clubs that remained loyal to the Australian Rugby League during the Super League war . This meant several Super League-aligned clubs that were already well-established internationals were not selected for the World Cup squad. During 1995, the Kangaroos defeated New Zealand 3–0 in

7584-488: The wing and centre kicked for Lyons to score. With the scores tied at 10-all going into injury time and the Kangaroos pinned just 15 metres from their line, Ricky Stuart set off on a 75-metre run before passing to Meninga winning try only seconds from full-time to give Australia a 14–10 win. The Kangaroos then wrapped up The Ashes with a comprehensive 14–0 win in the third test at Elland Road in Leeds. Meninga as captain became just

7680-417: The winning nation for the first four tournaments, before being stolen in 1970. After its recovery, the trophy was reinstated for the 2000 tournament. Qualifying rounds were first introduced for the 2000 World Cup . Hosts and teams reaching the knockout rounds of the previous tournament automatically qualify for the next. The remaining spots are achieved through regional qualification tournaments, split between

7776-489: The women's and wheelchair tournaments held separately in 2028 and 2029 respectfully, all on a four-year cycle. The World Cup trophy was commissioned by French Fédération Française de Rugby à XIII president Paul Barrière at a cost of eight million francs, and then donated to the International Rugby League Board to be used for the inaugural competition in 1954. This trophy was used and presented to

7872-545: The year. The 1994 Kangaroo Tour was the last time the Australian national team played matches against British provincial teams, in addition to the Tests. Australia continued its dominance, winning both Test series against Great Britain and France, suffering only one loss (again, against Great Britain in the First Test at Wembley), and remained undefeated against British club outfits in a streak stretching back to 1978. Australia adopted

7968-408: Was a national selector in 1946 and coach of the national side for the 1946 first post-WWII Anglo-Australian series. Australia's 1948-49 Kangaroo tour of Great Britain and France was their seventh tour to the UK. They played the Ashes series against a side officially called Great Britain. During the 1951 French rugby league tour of Australia and New Zealand , Australia lost the three-Test series to

8064-473: Was a physical encounter, and Australian captain Wally Lewis played part of the match with a broken arm. The Kangaroos won the competition 25–12 in front of a capacity crowd of nearly 48,000 spectators. This format was repeated from 1989 to 1992 (with games once again also being part of tours) and Australia won again, defeating Great Britain 10–6 at Wembley Stadium in front of 73,361 people. This crowd remained

8160-509: Was a tight game with the Lions leading 6–4 with less than 20 minutes remaining before an on debut Steve Renouf crossed for the only try of the game and along with Meninga's sideline conversion gave the Kangaroos a famous victory. Australia again played a mid-season test series against New Zealand in 1993. The first test at the Mt Smart Stadium in Auckland ended in a 14-all draw thanks to

8256-399: Was also in 2013 when The Gnoll , Neath , with a capacity of 5,000 hosted a game between Wales and Cook Islands . Despite this, it was not the lowest attended game; this was in the 2000 World Cup when just 1,497 attended the game between Wales and Lebanon at Stradey Park , Llanelli . The cities with the most stadiums used are Sydney and London with 4 each. Hull and Auckland are

8352-545: Was also represented by a Super League Australia team, drawing on players from that year's Super League competition. Rugby football has been played in Australia since the 1860s. In 1863, Sydney University became the first rugby club to be formed in Sydney, and played games amongst themselves or against the crews of visiting British ships. The Sydney Football Club (1865) and the Wallaroos (1870) followed, and inter-club competition commenced. By 1880, there were 100 clubs across

8448-632: Was held in England in 2022 after being delayed by a year due to the COVID-19 pandemic . The Rugby League World Cup was an initiative of the French who had been campaigning for a competition since 1935. The idea was raised in 1951 by Paul Barrière , the President of the French Rugby League . In 1952, Rugby Football League secretary Bill Fallowfield persuaded the Rugby League Council to support

8544-410: Was later confirmed on 24 July 2024 that Australia would host the tournament with a number of games co-hosted by Papua New Guinea. With the announcement of the 2025 World Cup being moved to 2026 came confirmation that the following competition would be held in 2030. In the announcement International Rugby League confirmed that the tournament would be held once again as a stand alone competition with

8640-439: Was moved very early in its organisation to 2013 due to the United Kingdom hosting the 2012 Summer Olympics . The competition was considered the most successful competition since 1995 in terms of attendances, exposure and financial output. The tournament saw Italy and the United States play in their first world cup. Australia took the title again after defeating New Zealand in the final by a score of 34–2. The final attendance became

8736-532: Was replaced as coach in 1984 by a returning Frank Stanton. In 1985, Australia made a six-match tour of New Zealand under the coaching of Terry Fearnley who before the tour had coached NSW to its first ever Origin series win over Qld (the tour actually took place between games 2 and 3 of the Origin series). The Kangaroos won five of those matches, and the Test series 2–1. Australia won the first Test in Brisbane 26–20. On Sunday 30 June 1985, Australia met New Zealand in

8832-578: Was seen as highly unsuccessful with an average attendance just half that of the previous tournament. Due to these problems the competition was put on indefinite hiatus and replaced with the Rugby League Tri-Nations . After the failure of the 2000 World Cup, no plans were made for another tournament until 2008 with the competition reverting to a 10-team format. The tournament also moved from every three to every four years inline with most other major international sports competitions. Australia hosted

8928-468: Was selected manager, coach and as the sole selector for the Australian national team's 1962 Ashes series. After ten previous tours of Britain, the 1963–64 Kangaroo tour saw Australia's first ever Ashes victory on British soil. The Arthur Summons coached Kangaroos won the first test at Wembley Stadium before rampaging to a famous 50–12 win in the second test at Station Road in Swinton . Although they lost

9024-474: Was the most watched rugby league world cup in history, and was regarded as a sporting, commercial, and social success by the IRL. A proposal was put forward in 2016 to hold the 2025 Rugby League World Cup in the United States and Canada, but in December 2018 plans for the tournament to be held in North America were scrapped due to financial concerns. On 11 January 2022, it was announced France would host

9120-402: Was undertaken by an ' Australasian ' squad that included four New Zealanders. They won the Ashes for the first time, and for the next half century, no other touring team did do so on British soil. The 1914 Great Britain Lions tour of Australia and New Zealand was the second time the British toured down under. The Australians, captained by Sid Deane for all three tests, got one victory but lost

9216-502: Was won by Great Britain. The first test of the 1932 Ashes series between Australia and Great Britain drew a world record international rugby league attendance of 70,204 to the Sydney Cricket Ground . This attendance stood as the world record until the 1992 World Cup final played at Wembley Stadium , and as of 2013 remains the record attendance for a rugby league test played in Australia. The Jim Sullivan led Lions triumphed over

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