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RLWC 2025

yakstorm

First Grade
Messages
6,037
They do an amazing job making each match an event in itself within the tournament, just like FIFA did recently in Australia & New Zealand with the Women's World Cup which helps attract the casual sports audiences.

At best we are able to do maybe two games a tournament. Last tournament it was the opener and then the final and in 2013 it was the double header in London and the final (Opener in Millennium had a little bit of that factor.)
 

Perth Red

Post Whore
Messages
69,546
Most RUWC "highlights" are like that: mostly penalty goals !!

It should be called the PGWC: Penalty Goal World Cup ! LOL
If ever there was an example that quality of product is no determiner of sales!

What they do do well is get the whole country backing them, something kangaroos and kiwis have continually failed to do, mind you with the neglect of international rugby league by the nrl it shouldn’t be a surprise.
 

taste2taste

Juniors
Messages
2,467
If ever there was an example that quality of product is no determiner of sales!

What they do do well is get the whole country backing them, something kangaroos and kiwis have continually failed to do, mind you with the neglect of international rugby league by the nrl it shouldn’t be a surprise.
It's like the VHS vs Beta wars of the 80s. Although Beta was a far superior product VHS dominated the market, They were smart enough to get thier product out early and sign up all the major movie distributors, Beta had a small loyal fan base that knew just because VHS was bigger didn't mean it was better.

By 2010 VHS had long disappeared but Beta was still going strong being used in TV productions and news rooms across the world.
 

titoelcolombiano

First Grade
Messages
6,624
If ever there was an example that quality of product is no determiner of sales!

What they do do well is get the whole country backing them, something kangaroos and kiwis have continually failed to do, mind you with the neglect of international rugby league by the nrl it shouldn’t be a surprise.
NZ Warriors
PNG Hunters
Kaiviti Silktails
Pacific Tests / Championships
Paying players wages for Aus, NZ and the Pacific nations
Funding the Warriors junior pathways through the NSW system

Pretty good contribution 👌
 

Last Week

Bench
Messages
3,724
As sht a sport as it is you can only marvel at the following the RUWC has had, oh for half that much interest in a RLWC! Union fans travel the world for it, we can’t even get our own fans in the same city to go!
Bitch bitch bitch
 

jim_57

Moderator
Staff member
Messages
4,602
Pacific, Europe, MEA & Americas champions to play off for last 2 WC spots.

Asia-Pacific - Cook Islands locked in.
Europe - France or Ireland if they can get a lot of heritage players involved.
MEA - Probably South Africa?
Americas - Jamaica or USA

So essentially it will be Cook Islands and France or Ireland. Should have excluded any more Pacific teams IMO, Cooks had their chance to auto-qualify last World Cup.
 

bowes

Juniors
Messages
1,320
Pacific, Europe, MEA & Americas champions to play off for last 2 WC spots.

Asia-Pacific - Cook Islands locked in.
Europe - France or Ireland if they can get a lot of heritage players involved.
MEA - Probably South Africa?
Americas - Jamaica or USA

So essentially it will be Cook Islands and France or Ireland. Should have excluded any more Pacific teams IMO, Cooks had their chance to auto-qualify last World Cup.
Basically Jamaica, Cook Islands and South Africa will automatically qualify for the world series as the only full members in their continent not automatically qualified and then seven European teams will play off for the last spot:

France, Wales, Scotland, Ireland, Italy, Serbia and Ukraine. Russia would have been the eighth but are suspended.

The USA and Greece aren't eligible to try to qualify despite having played in previous world cups.
 

yakstorm

First Grade
Messages
6,037
What's the bet the World Series won't be a round robin either and be just two knock outs (with maybe a final to declare a 'World Series' winner) like the MEA & Americas Championships?

Europe has really been screwed over by the new World Cup structure.
 

Perth Red

Post Whore
Messages
69,546
What's the bet the World Series won't be a round robin either and be just two knock outs (with maybe a final to declare a 'World Series' winner) like the MEA & Americas Championships?

Europe has really been screwed over by the new World Cup structure.
Ridiculous that France, wales, scotland and ireland are playing for 1 spot whilst those others are straight in. Only in RL!
 

jim_57

Moderator
Staff member
Messages
4,602
What's the bet the World Series won't be a round robin either and be just two knock outs (with maybe a final to declare a 'World Series' winner) like the MEA & Americas Championships?

Europe has really been screwed over by the new World Cup structure.

Probably. It shouldn’t be as it shouldn’t be “seeded” even though we know Cook Islands and the Euro qualifier should walk it in.

It will most likely be Cook Islands V South Africa played in Australia and France/Ireland/Wales V Jamaica played in Englandvwith no final.
 

yakstorm

First Grade
Messages
6,037
Scotland honestly fails on a few fronts. Some that come to mind:

Participation: Population > 500k: minimum 250 registered players with annual records maintained.
Clubs: Minimum 4 clubs (as per 1.2) each with minimum 1 senior + 1 junior (U15-U19) team involved in annual 13-a-side competition
Senior Competition: Population > 500k: 6-team comp min. 1 round (5 games per team)
Junior Competition (U15-19): Population > 500k: 4-team comp minimum 2 round (6 games per team)

It's questionable if they satisfy the national team requirements as well.
 

Perth Red

Post Whore
Messages
69,546
Do you have to be that grade to pay in RLWC? I’d be surprised if places lIke Jamaica, Greece and Italy met those criteria?
 

yakstorm

First Grade
Messages
6,037
Do you have to be that grade to pay in RLWC? I’d be surprised if places lIke Jamaica, Greece and Italy met those criteria?
Jamaica comfortably does.

From a club perspective you have the National Club Championship, which features 7 men's teams (Duhaney Park Red Sharks, Washington Blvd Bulls, Liguanea Dragons, The Jamaica Defence Force Warriors, West Kingston Hyenas, Portmore Rugby League, and St Catherine Old Boys Thundercats) and 5 in the Women's (Duhaney Park Red Sharks, St Bess Sledgehammers, The Jamaica Defence Force Warriors, Washington Blvd Bulls and Portmore Rugby League).

There is then Division 2, which contains a further 8 men's teams.

Jamaica then has its High School competition which features 12 schools playing U14s, U16s & U19s competitions plus the Intercollege Championship featuring Excelsior Community College, GC Foster College, The Mico University College, The University of the West Indies, University of Technology and Caribbean Maritime University.

They then also host various 9s competitions, Parish of Origin representative fixtures and have started also running exile teams in the US and Canada.

It's a bit of a shame that RL was already in the US & Canada when it was introduced to Jamaica, yet it has kicked on creating actual pathways whilst the others haven't.
 

Matterhorn

Juniors
Messages
150
https://www.intrl.sport/media/p00hzpfr/rlwc-2028-30-itt.pdf

Next two mens world cups only 18 games. Return of the dreaded Super pool!

That will do it for me. Should of been 2 pools of 5 like RU even though we have half the teams. Top 2 from each cross over for semis then final. With 4 games for each country it would allow teams to drop a game and still be in contention. The super pool just stacks the deck - when will the IRL not get we will never have a nirvana concept of even like teams playing each other. The RU world cup proves this even now with there pools. I thought when we went to 16 that was for good & even in 20 years we could dream of a 20 team world cup. We'd be lucky to get to > 10 teams in 20 years based on current forward thinking. A joke of a concept.
 

Jim from Oz

Juniors
Messages
748
https://www.intrl.sport/media/p00hzpfr/rlwc-2028-30-itt.pdf

Next two mens world cups only 18 games. Return of the dreaded Super pool!
An absolute joke … it's amazing how unbelievably dumb RL is as a sport … but I just don't care anymore … I'm just so over the stupidity …

Meanwhile, the Yawnion WC is expanding to 24 teams in 2027 … and the 2034 Soccer WC, if awarded to Saudi Arabia (if looks likely), will likely then be held in Nov/Dec 2034, just when the RLWC would be held … another example of the utter stupidity of International RL shifting its 4-year RLWC cycle to 2026, 2030, 2034 etc from its previous 2025, 2029, 2033 etc when there would never be ANY clashes with ANY major sport.


Dumb, dumb, dumb, dumb, dumb, dumb, dumb, dumb, dumb, dumb, dumb and dumb !!!
 

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