List of Rugby League World Cup opening matches

The Rugby League World Cup is an international rugby league competition established in 1954. The tournament has taken place fifteen times in irregular intervals,^[1] however the tournament is currently happening every four years.

The opening match is the first match of the tournament and usually it has a ceremony to go with it. Often, it features the host nation.

List of opening matches[edit]

Italics denotes host nation.

Year	Winning Team	Final score	Losing Team	Venue	Location	Attendance	References	Notes
1954	France	22–13	New Zealand	Parc des Princes	Paris, France	13,240	Report
1957	Great Britain	23–5	France	Sydney Cricket Ground	Sydney, Australia	50,077	Report
1960	Great Britain	23–8	New Zealand	Odsal Stadium	Bradford, England	20,577	Report	^[a]
1960	Australia	13–12	France	Central Park	Wigan, England	20,278	Report	^[a]
1968	Australia	25–10	Great Britain	Sydney Cricket Ground	Sydney, Australia	62,256	Report
1970	Australia	47–11	New Zealand	Central Park	Wigan, England	9,805	Report
1972	France	15–10	New Zealand	Stade Vélodrome	Marseille, France	20,748	Report
1975	France	14–7	Wales	Stadium de Toulouse	Toulouse, France	7,563	Report
1977	Australia	27–12	New Zealand	Carlaw Park	Auckland, New Zealand	18,000	Report
1985–1988	New Zealand	18–0	Australia	Carlaw Park	Auckland, New Zealand	15,327	Report
1989–1992	Australia	22–14	New Zealand	Mount Smart Stadium	Auckland, New Zealand	15,000	Report
1995	England	20–16	Australia	Wembley Stadium (1923)	London, England	41,271	Report
2000	Australia	22–2	England	Twickenham Stadium	London, England	33,758	Report
2008	England	32–22	Papua New Guinea	Willows Sports Complex	Townsville, Australia	10,780	Report	^[b]
2013	Italy	32–16	Wales	Millennium Stadium	Cardiff, Wales	45,052	Report	^[c]
2017	Australia	18–4	England	Melbourne Rectangular Stadium	Melbourne, Australia	22,724	Report
2021	England	60–6	Samoa	St James' Park	Newcastle upon Tyne, England	43,199	Report

Notes[edit]

^ Two matches were played at the same time on the opening day.
^ The opening ceremony was held the following day before a double header, with the matches being Indigenous Dreamtime 34–26 New Zealand Maori (not a tournament match) and Australia 30–6 New Zealand at the Sydney Football Stadium.
^ This was the first match in a double header with Australia 28–20 England being the other match.

References[edit]

^ "Rugby League World Cup | History & Winners". Encyclopedia Britannica. Retrieved 2020-03-26.

[2] Two matches were played at the same time on the opening day.

[3] The opening ceremony was held the following day before a double header, with the matches being Indigenous Dreamtime 34–26 New Zealand Maori (not a tournament match) and Australia 30–6 New Zealand at the Sydney Football Stadium.

[4] This was the first match in a double header with Australia 28–20 England being the other match.

[1] "Rugby League World Cup | History & Winners". Encyclopedia Britannica. Retrieved 2020-03-26.

[1]

[a]

[b]

[c]