The Rugby Football League are hoping to line up southern hemisphere opposition for Wayne Bennett’s side as they look to give them the best possible preparation for the 2017 World Cup.
A mid-year Test match against New Zealand – possibly in the Middle East – had previously been mooted.
But RFL chief executive Nigel Wood said the “most likely outcome” was now for England and to have a fixture on Sunday, May 7 as part of the NRL’s representative weekend, which is headlined by the Anzac Test.
It is understood that the most likely opponents for such a game is one of the Pacific Island nations.
Papua New Guinea look an obvious option, with Fiji, Tonga, Samoa and the Cook Islands offering alternatives.
Should no suitable opponent be found, the England team is likely to play a home game against France instead.
Either way, RFL chief Wood said: “I think we’ll be having a mid-season international next year, which is one of the issues on (Wayne Bennett’s) wishlist.
“We’re just working out who that will be against and where that will take place.
“It will be wherever it needs to be. The overwhelming consideration is the quality of the opposition.
“There are two alternatives in play; one involves southern hemisphere opposition where we go down there and one involves where we wouldn’t.
“The most likely outcome is that a match will be played on or around the NRL’s representative weekend – May 7.
“I wouldn’t rule out Dubai. Singapore or Hong Kong, but fundamentally it’s either England or Australia.
“The other bits and pieces of how we keep England together in World Cup year are all being worked through very positively and collaboratively.”
Those “bits and pieces” include a two-week warm weather training camp in January.
